The Other Life of Faust
by MusedMoose
Summary: An Alternate Telling: the machine that would have given Faust the Tenth the memories of the nine who came before him breaks. What does this change about Faust's outlook, and what changes will it mean for Gartlant? (oh, just about everything.)
1. Prologue: Careful Youth

Author's Note:

First, standard fanfic disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters or places named in the story, I'm not claiming to, and I wouldn't want to 'cause really, who would want to live in a world without women? Please don't sue the starving writer.

Second, rated PG-13 for language and mildly adult content. It's nothing worse than you'd see on TV. I think.

Third, a note about spelling: my thanks to Kenox for noticing that I'd been spelling Panther's name "Panta." I didn't even realize that I'd done that - the first time I saw all of SMJ, it was on a fansub that used that spelling, so I guess it's stuck with me.

Fourth, if you're reading this for the first time, welcome. If you're just coming back to this story after its nearly two-year hiatus, welcome back! I've spent some time editing the entire story for various things, but almost nothing in terms of actual content has been changed. Either way, I hope you enjoy this.

* * *

Prologue: Careful Youth

Faust the Tenth, future ruler of Gartlant, screamed and struggled against the steel band that held his head in place. All around him, Hess's bizarre machine spun and cranked, sending flashes of light across the room, preparing young Faust for the memories of the nine who came before him. Faust could already see flickers of the other lives in his head, glimpses of a past he didn't want but had to adopt for the sake of Gartlant. He screamed again.

Through the dome that hung over his head, he saw Tiger, the red-haired marionette he'd met just after being born. She looked worried, though Faust could tell she was trying to hide it. Ever since she'd taken him to see the flowers and Faust the Ninth had beaten her for it, Tiger had done her best to appear emotionless around the older man. She hid her feelings from everyone but young Faust. Why was a marionette the only one who ever seemed to care about him? To Hess, he was just an experiment, to Faust IX, he was just a copy, another clone in line for--

An image popped into young Faust's mind. A woman who looked a little like Tiger, though not quite; the woman's hair was longer and her face seemed less sad. But what startled Faust was that the vision was of a real woman, flesh and blood, not a marionette. Who was she? And how was it possible--

There was a sudden loud crash, and the dome over young Faust's head swung wildly, then smacked into his forehead. The barrage of foreign memories came to a jarring halt, and young Faust gave a ragged cry as his head started to throb. All around him, the machine slowly spun to a halt, and he heard the elder Faust's voice.

"Hess, what happened?"

For the first time in his life, young Faust heard Hess sound worried. "I don't know, Fuhrer. Everything was fully functional this morning."

Young Faust hung his aching head as Tiger ran up to him. "Faust-sama! Are you all right?" She started undoing the buckles that held him to the chair, and as soon as he was free, he fell. She caught him before he hit the ground. "Faust-sama!"

". . . should be ready again in two days," Faust heard Hess say as he tried to stay conscious.

"Have it done as soon as possible," the elder Faust said, anger in his voice. "The Tenth must be ready to assume leadership when I am gone." He turned and started to walk out of the room, then stopped just before he reached the door. "Have him taken to his room," Faust IX said, "and have the marionette punished for coddling him again."

Young Faust looked up at Tiger, at the worry and fear in her eyes, and whispered "Tiger, I'm sorry," before he passed out.

* * *

Faust the Tenth woke up screaming.

His dreams were filled with war and conquest, of tanks crushing the boundaries of Terra II's neighboring countries and armies of battle-made marionettes invading foreign cities, places he'd only read about and could hardly imagine. The dreams had an undertone of power and glory, as though he was supposed to enjoy watching the war, but all he could see was fear and pain and death. He shook his head violently, whipping his blond hair back and forth, and wiped the cold sweat from his brow.

Was this what the other nine Fausts had dreamed of? Was he supposed to want this? Was this supposed to be Gartlant's future?

"Faust-sama?"

Faust looked toward the bedroom door and saw Tiger, standing there in silhouette. Even though it was night, she was still wearing her suit, oddly formal and sort of ridiculous at the same time. As always, she wore her cap, the same one she'd put on his head after he'd hurt himself, before the elder Faust hurt her. Young Faust shuddered.

"Tiger," he sighed, oddly aware of how relieved he sounded.

"Did you have a bad dream, Faust-sama?" she asked as she approached his bed. She stopped a few feet away, standing almost at attention, looking much more restrained than usual. "It was only a dream. You should go back to sleep."

Faust's face fell. "Tiger, what's . . . what's wrong with you? Why are you talking like that, you don't - you don't!"

Tiger stood still for a moment, then fell to her knees at the side of Faust's bed. "Faust-sama! Please forgive me!" She looked up at him, and he could see the sadness in her eyes. "They tortured me, and they told me . . . told me to treat you like the leader of Gartlant, and not a child!"

Young Faust gritted his teeth. First the memories, then the dreams, and now this . . . it wasn't right. He wasn't really sure how or what, but something wasn't right about any of it.

"Tiger."

"Yes, Faust-sama?" Her gaze hadn't left him.

"You have to follow my orders, right?" Faust started to smile.

"Yes, Faust-sama. I am yours to command."

"Then listen to me." He leaned forward and put his hands on her shoulders, and grinned at the look on her face. "I want you to destroy the machine."

"But Faust-sama, the memories. . . ." Tiger started to shrink back, as though she feared being hit.

"I don't want them," Faust whispered, squeezing her shoulders. "You don't know what it was like. . . . Please, Tiger! Do something so they can't do that to me again!" He looked into her eyes, pleading.

For a second, she seemed confused, then Tiger nodded. "Yes, Faust-sama." She smiled.

Faust smiled back at her, trying to keep himself from laughing out loud. "Thank you, Tiger," he said.

"Anything for you, Faust-sama." Tiger stood and turned for the door, but Faust caught the back of her coat. She paused, and looked back at him.

"Be careful," Faust said. "I don't want you to get in trouble again." She nodded, and he smirked. "Make it look like Hess screwed it up if you can."

To Faust's surprise, Tiger smirked back. "Yes, Faust-sama." Even if she didn't say so, Faust was sure she was going to enjoy this. She hurried out of the bedroom.

Faust leaned back and lay down, then pulled the covers up over himself. He knew that Tiger wasn't like other marionettes, like the blank-faced servants that everybody used around the palace, but he figured she was just programmed to act more human because she'd been made for him. He wasn't sure why she'd seemed to like his plan so much, but at least he knew she would do it.

Faust rolled over and slept more peacefully than he had in a long, long time.

* * *

A week later, young Faust sat in the Gartlant palace library, surrounded by stacks of books. Most of them were histories, and almost all of them had titles like 'The Glorious Era of Faust the Fifth' or something like that. He was, of course, bored out of his skull.

Faust leaned back in his chair and heaved a sigh. Ever since Tiger had broken Hess's machine, Faust IX had insisted that he learn everything he could about Gartlant history. In theory, it was supposed to help him learn how to run the nation. In practice, it was driving him slowly mad, and making him think that Gartlant was seriously messed up.

"Let's see," Faust said to himself, picking up the list of notes he'd been taking just in case Faust IX barged in again and demanded proof that he was learning. "Most of the economy, including commerce and all production, is run by computer, the same computer that runs the army functions." He paused. "Which is really stupid, because it always rations out food like it's wartime. Then again, it looks like we're the only one who ever wants to go to war, so it makes some weird kind of sense." He scoffed, then looked to the next item on the list. "Marionettes only for the use of those who run the nation." He snorted. "Can't imagine why, seeing how Ninth treats Tiger, even if she is programmed different."

"You called, Faust-sama?"

Faust looked up as Tiger walked into the library. He smiled at her. Of course she was nearby, she was supposed to be protecting him. Not that he had a problem with that.

"Not really," he said, "but I'm glad you're here. Can you believe I have to read all this?" he asked, gesturing to the stacks of books. "I swear, it all sounds the same after a while."

"If you say so, Faust-sama," Tiger said noncommitally.

"Something's not right about a lot of this," Faust said, turning back to his notes. "Things will be different when I'm in charge, believe me."

"I hope so," Tiger said quietly.

Faust looked at her and blinked. "What?"

Tiger snapped to attention and looked straight ahead. "Forgive me, Faust-sama! I spoke out of turn--"

"No," Faust interrupted, and Tiger looked at him, surprise on her face. "No, you didn't. What were you going to say?"

Tiger bowed her head, and it was a moment before she started speaking. "I was given the history lessons as well, Faust-sama. I saw what you see now. Gartlant has always been the same."

"Do you think it should be?" Faust asked. When Tiger didn't say anything, he pressed on. "Look, Tiger, you know this better than I do. I've hardly been off the palace grounds. You have, haven't you?"

"Some, Faust-sama."

"What's it like out there? Because it seems like Gartlant never does anything but prepare for war, even if we're not fighting anyone, and that's not right." He remembered the dreams of death and conquest that came after he'd been put through Hess's machine, and shuddered. "I mean, that can't be good for anybody but the army."

"It's as you say, Faust-sama," Tiger ventured, sounding more confident. "Gartlant's army always gets whatever it needs. From what I've seen outside of the palace, the people who aren't in the army suffer."

"That's not right," Faust said, shaking his head. "Why do we even need such a large army, none of the other countries are even aggressive!" He took a deep breath, then looked up at Tiger. "Tiger, once I'm running this place, I'm going to change things, and I'm going to need your help."

"Yes, Faust-sama!" Tiger said with a bright smile.

"Just promise me that you'll never be afraid to tell me what you think, no matter what. I'm not like the old guy, I'm not going to hurt you. Ever." He grinned at the look of relief on Tiger's face, and wondered if there was more behind it, or if it really was just her programming. He decided he didn't care. "Besides," he said quietly, "you're the only one here who really cares about me."

Tiger didn't say anything, but lowered herself to his level, then leaned forward and hugged him. To Faust's surprise, she was warm, and then he remembered the day he'd hurt himself, and she had kissed it to make him feel better. Faust grinned, and hugged her back.

He knew he had a lot to do. But with a marionette like Tiger at his side, he was sure he'd be all right.


	2. Part 1: New Life, New Rules

Part 1: New Life, New Rules

It was another seven years before Faust IX died.

The elder Faust had been showing his age even when Faust the Tenth had been born, so he wasn't surprised when the grey-haired old man finally couldn't get out of bed. He knew how he was supposed to behave, he'd read about it in the histories - there was always a period of mourning when one clone died and the next took his place, and everyone in the nation was supposed to wear black armbands for at least a month. Like most things dealing with Gartlant's ruler, the mourning was enforced.

Faust the Tenth found it very, very difficult to care.

He stood over the old man's bed, watching him breathe with the help of some machine one of Hess's earlier clones had dreamed up. The two Fausts glared at each other. That was nothing new; it'd been the majority of their communication for the past seven years. Once the elder Faust had realized that his heir didn't plan on continuing the traditional leadership, he'd threatened everything from exile to execution, but hadn't actually gone through with any of it. Young Faust guessed it was because the old man didn't want to risk having another clone around without Hess's memory machine. Either that, or Faust IX thought he might end up with something worse.

The past seven years had been difficult to say the least, young Faust thought as he looked down at the elder version of himself, making a mental note to get more sun so he wouldn't look so pale when it was his time to die. He'd made no secret of his plans to run Gartlant differently, and after the elder Faust had tried every threat he knew to get him to change his ways, he'd resorted to having Tiger tortured again.

Young Faust remembered that day with a grim smile. After finding out what the old man had done to the only person - he hardly thought of her as a marionette anymore - who was kind to him, the only person whom he had a reason to be kind to, Faust had walked up to the Ninth and punched him in the jaw. He remembered standing there, watching the old man reel back, and telling him that if anyone ever touched Tiger again, there'd be hell to pay.

"I'll destroy the records you have for us, all the genetic samples and stored memories," he had threatened. "I'll make sure there can't be a ruling Faust in Gartlant ever again. Then, when you die, I'll leave."

"Boy," the elder Faust had grumbled after regaining his footing, "you're a fool. I should have had you killed and another clone made a long time ago."

"Kind of late for that now, isn't it? I think even your people might revolt after learning about that, no matter how much you beat them down."

Thinking back, young Faust realized that it was probably one of their more pleasant conversations.

"Boy," the elder Faust wheezed as the two of them stared each other down, "I hope you know . . . I'll be watching, when I'm gone. I'll be watching . . . and I'll be laughing."

"Maybe you will," young Faust said, a cocky grin on his face. "But only because you'll realize how badly you screwed everything up. You won't be able to keep yourself from laughing."

Faust IX actually did laugh at that, a hoarse, rasping sound that echoed faintly in the medical room. "You still don't understand, you never did. You don't know why the memories are . . . so important." He squinted up at the younger Faust. "You don't know why you have to make--" He coughed, and his whole body shook. ". . . why you have to make the marionettes grow." He started coughing again, and clutched at his chest.

"Marionettes . . . grow?" Young Faust drew back, confused. Marionettes? He only had one, if he had to think of Tiger that way. The others were just the servant and combat drones, but they weren't much more than background in the palace. And even if he had more than one, how could marionettes grow? Tiger seemed to be alive at times, so Faust usually did his best to forget that she was a machine, but she'd always been the same height and everything. "What's that supposed to mean, grow?"

"It's the last thing you have to know, boy," the elder Faust said, spitting the last word, "so listen and make yourself good for something. Go to Hess's lab--"

Young Faust shivered at the idea. Even after seven years, Hess still gave him the creeps.

"-and find the others. They've been ready for years."

"The others?"

"Stop questioning me and promise you'll do it," Faust IX rasped.

"And what if I don't?" he asked, more out of habit than anything else.

The elder Faust paused for a moment, still glowering. His next words were soft, without most of his usual harshness. "Do you remember her, boy?"

The younger Faust blinked down at the elder, surprised at the change in tone. When he didn't say anything, the Ninth continued.

"Do you remember Lorelei? The woman that we've spent the past two hundred and ninety years trying to save?"

"Lorelei. . . ." Young Faust whispered the name, and let his mind trail back to the few images he remembered, the bits and pieces of time spent with a woman who looked just enough like Tiger for there to be a resemblance. There was something very important about her, he was sure of that. But when he tried to think of what, everything fell apart. "I remember her, sort of," he said after a moment. "What's so important?"

"She's the key," the elder Faust said quietly. "She's everything. Go to Hess's lab, and find the others, find the records from the First and Second." He coughed, his whole body shaking. "Promise me, boy."

The image of Lorelei flickered in and out of young Faust's mind, teasing him, making him want to know what her story was and why the Fausts before him had been so obsessed with her. He looked down at the old man, and nodded. He could do this, if only to satisfy his own curiosity. "I promise, Ninth," he said, trying for once not to sound contemptuous. "I'll find out what's going on."

He watched the older man sigh, and his breathing became shallow. "Wait," young Faust said. "About the marionettes growing, what did you mean?"

The elder Faust looked up at him, and for a moment, it looked like he was going to speak. The corners of his eyes crinkled up in what might have been a smile. He then closed his eyes, and a moment later he stopped breathing.

Young Faust hardly noticed as the machines around him stopped beeping and started shrieking, and paid no attention as a group of doctors rushed into the room. All he waited for was the pronouncement of death. When the doctors gave him the word, he turned and strode out of the room.

Tiger was there waiting for him; he wasn't surprised but was glad for her presence. She fell into step beside him without saying a word. The time when she'd walked behind him was long past, he'd asked her to walk by his side years ago and she always seemed glad to do so.

"He's dead," Faust said.

"I'm sorry, Faust-sama," she said.

He turned and grinned at her. "Don't lie to me," he said, and watched as she smiled back at him. "I need you to take me to Hess's lab, the old man said there's something I need to see there."

"Yes, Faust-sama."

"Any idea what it is?" he asked.

She nodded, and pushed her cap a bit back on her head. "Yes, Faust-sama," she said again. "But you have to see it yourself first. Will you forgive me for not telling you?"

"There's nothing to forgive, Tiger," he said, still grinning. "I told you, you're free to say what you think. And now that the old man's gone, you don't have to worry about being punished anymore. In fact," he said, putting a hand to his chin, "I think I'll make it a law that nobody can hit a marionette. They should have rights too, even if they're not programmed like you."

"I'd like that, Faust-sama," Tiger said, "but nobody outside the palace owns marionettes."

"I know," Faust said. "I'll work on that."

The two of them walked into one of the dark elevators, and Tiger tapped in a code once the doors closed. The elevator went down, down, down into the bowels of the palace, down past the bottom floor and storage levels. Faust was just starting to wonder how far down Hess kept his labs when the elevator finally came to a stop.

"How far below the palace are we?" he asked, turning to Tiger with an unsure look on his face.

"Seven floors, Faust-sama," Tiger said. "Hess requested it that way."

"Freak gets what he wants," Faust mused. He then glanced over at Tiger. "Don't tell him I said that."

"Of course not, Faust-sama," she said, stifling a chuckle. Faust made a mental note: now that he was in charge, whoever had programmed her to be more human was getting a promotion.

The elevator doors opened, and Faust looked out into an area the size of several of the palace's meeting and dining halls put together. The room was large enough for a fleet of tanks to drive through it, and considering what he knew of Gartlant's armies, it might have been used for that. Bizarre mechanical devices were set up all around the room. Some of them looked like new kinds of weaponry, others Faust really wasn't sure if he wanted to know. In one corner, what looked like a giant crab leg was sticking up from the floor.

Hess walked toward the two of them, heading over from one corner of the lab room. He looked the same as Faust always remembered him - tall, bald, and clad in a black coat, with strange mechanical sunglasses that he wore no matter how dark it was. Faust suppressed a shiver. Hess still creeped him out, that had never changed.

"Lord Faust," Hess said formally, coming to a stop a few feet away from the new fuhrer. "Welcome to my lab."

"Greetings, Hess," Faust said, also formal. "Faust the Ninth is dead. His last words were for me to speak to you, to find 'the others' and some notes from the first two Fausts."

"Ah," Hess said with a nod. "You choose an interesting time to start obeying him."

"Don't push it, Hess," Faust said, glaring at him. "I'm fuhrer now, you obey my orders or you get out. Take your pick."

"Very well, fuhrer. Please follow me." Hess turned on his heel and headed into the lab, Faust and Tiger behind him.

He led them to a blank wall, then pressed his hand against a certain place. The wall slid back, then opened to the side, revealing a hidden room. Bluish light shined from inside, and in the near distance, Faust saw two glowing ovals. For a moment, he was reminded of the cloning tank where he'd been born. Hess stepped into the room, and a few lights came on from the ceiling. The room was mostly empty, though a database computer sat against one wall and there was what looked like some kind of operating table in the back.

"There's much you don't know, fuhrer," Hess said as he walked toward the back of the room. "Had you the memories of those who've come before you, you'd know all of this."

Faust frowned. He'd avoided the subject of the others' memories ever since he'd told Tiger to destroy the machine, and he tried not to think about it too much. "Maybe if your machine hadn't broken," he said with a shrug, hoping to remind Hess of his place. He strode toward the back of the room, and came to a stop next to Hess. After letting his eyes adjust to the dim light, Faust looked at what was there and blinked in surprise.

Two marionettes lay in the pods, looking like they were sleeping peacefully. One of them had short blue hair that covered her eyes, and wore a suit similar to Tiger's, though with a higher cut to the coat and a very short skirt. Something about her face suggested a bizarre kind of wicked innocence. Faust wasn't quite sure how to reconcile that, and so looked to the other pod.

The marionette there was blonde, with hair mostly short except for one gigantic lock that stuck up nearly a foot above her head before falling down over her right eye, which had a blue star-shaped patch over it. She wasn't wearing a coat, but had the same overly large shoulder pads that the blue-haired marionette wore, and the pants she wore stuck out oddly to the sides. As he looked at her face, Faust thought she seemed somehow rough around the edges, and had the odd thought that she was the type to snore while she slept.

Faust glanced over to Hess and asked, "Who are they?"

"Marionettes that the first and second Fausts made," Hess said. "They've been down here for centuries, waiting until Faust felt it was the right time."

"He thought I was the right one?" Faust asked, trying to hide the doubt in his voice.

"I'm not sure," Hess said. "Perhaps the fuhrer before you was getting desperate." He stepped over to the computer terminal and pulled back one of the chairs in front of it. "It might be best, fuhrer, if you go through the information contained here. It can explain things more fully than I."

Faust nodded, and sat down at the computer. Tiger, of course, was by his side, standing and keeping an eye on things. Hess disappeared into the shadows, though Faust had a feeling that he'd be back as soon as he was needed.

The database looked much like the ones Faust had gone through as a kid, a massive index of historical information and so forth. He'd liked them better than the libraries, as the movies that the databases stored were usually more interesting than the dry texts. He opened the first menu, and saw a list of topics, some of which he'd never seen before.

'Mesopotamia' was familiar, of course; he knew of the spaceship that had brought his predecessor and five other men to Terra II. 'Lorelei' wasn't as familiar, but he had a few thoughts about what he'd find there. 'Maiden Circuit' was completely new to him.

"This could take a while," Faust said, partly to himself and partly to Tiger. She only nodded. Faust opened the first directory and started reading.

* * *

Five hours later, Faust leaned back in the chair and let out his breath all at once. He almost wished that he'd had Hess explain it all; things might have been more confusing until he got the whole story but at least he'd have been able to wrap his head around it slowly. It wasn't that he couldn't believe that his predecessor had been in love with Lorelei, he couldn't really blame him. The fact that the Mesopotamia had taken her hostage was a surprise, especially considering that she'd designed the computer in the first place. If she was such a genius, shouldn't she have put in some kind of safeguards against the machine taking over like that?

What he was having the hardest time coming to terms with was the concept of the maiden circuits. Based off of Lorelei's idea of three parts of her personality that had given the Mesopotamia life, the circuits were supposed to give marionettes emotions, make them able to feel and think for themselves. So, he thought, it wasn't some kind of programming that made Tiger so much more human than the other marionettes around the palace. The other goal of the maiden circuits was to make marionettes into something almost like humans so that they could, as the file said, 'assist in bringing Lorelei to Terra II.' Faust wasn't sure just what circuits were supposed to do for that, and something in the back of his mind - perhaps more of the clones' memories? - told him he didn't want to know.

That, of course, left Tiger and the other two marionettes. Their names hadn't been given, but he'd figured that GSM-01T was Tiger. GSM-02L and GSM-03P had to be the others, and all three of them were equipped with maiden circuits. However, the database also said that they had been programmed to be servants to Faust, and so would not have the same mindset that Lorelei's original design intended.

He had to wonder about that. If they were supposed to be human, or almost human, then why not let them act how they wanted, instead of programming them to follow someone else's whims and orders? It sounded a little too much like how he'd nearly had memories forced into him. Whether there was anything he could do about it, he wasn't sure.

Faust turned to Tiger, and asked, "Did you know all this?"

"Yes, Faust-sama," she said. "I was told everything about the maiden circuit, but told not to reveal it to you until you found out for yourself."

He leaned back in the chair, pushed his long blonde ponytail back over his shoulder, and put a hand to his chin. He had the sudden urge for a glass of wine, but shook it off, as it was something he'd always seen the old man do whenever he had something big to think about. It was all starting to make sense, he thought, but there was still one piece missing.

"Do you know," he asked Tiger, "what's meant by making the maiden circuit grow?" Despite the importance that the elder Faust had put on it, none of the notes had anything about what could make that happen.

"No, Faust-sama," she said. She paused, then put a hand over where her heart would be. "There are times, though, when I feel something inside me move, like something had. . . ." She trailed off, and looked down at Faust, then gave a small smile. "I'm sorry, Faust-sama, but I'm not sure what it is."

Faust didn't say anything, but nodded. She might be on to something. He'd have to be sure to have her tell him when it happened again. "Hess," he called.

"Yes, fuhrer?" Hess said, appearing from just over his shoulder.

Faust nearly jumped out of his chair. It took some effort for him to remain composed. "First, don't ever do that again. Second, awaken the other two marionettes."

Hess paused. "You're sure about this, fuhrer? There may have been a reason that your predecessors kept them--"

Faust stood and glared down at him. "Do it," he said through his teeth.

"Yes, fuhrer."

Some kind of vapor poured out of the two pods as Hess hit a switch that opened them both. Faust watched as the two marionettes within rose and stepped out. They stood in the room's perpetual shadows, and he could see their eyes glowing as their internal systems were fully activated. At his side, Tiger looked startled for a moment, but said nothing. After a moment, the two marionettes stepped forward, and they both fell to one knee.

"Faust-sama, I am Panther," the blonde one said. Her voice was much as he'd expected it to be, deeper and more mature than Tiger's. "I am here to serve you."

"Faust-sama, I am Luchs," the blue-haired one said. Her voice was lighter, and again the sense of some kind of dark naivete was there, along with a hint of mischievousness. "I am here to serve you."

Faust looked at Luchs, then at Panther, and felt his lip curl. So this was what his predecessor had programmed them to do, this was how they thought they had to be. Well, he'd have none of that.

"Stand, both of you," he said, doing his best to have a commanding voice. He'd seen the old man use it, and knew that people tended to listen to it. When the two marionettes had obeyed, he looked them in the eye one by one. It took some doing, as Luchs's hair mostly covered her eyes and he could only see one of Panther's, but he managed. "My first order to you both," he began, "is to stop with this 'I am here to serve you' crap. You both have maiden circuits, right?"

"Yes, Faust-sama," the two marionettes said in unison.

"I know you care for me," he said, more quietly than before. "So treat me like someone you care about, not someone you have to obey because you think you'll get punished. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Faust-sama." He thought he saw something like relief on their faces, but he couldn't quite be sure. The next thing he saw was a rather fierce expression on Panther's face as she leaped forward and hugged him so tight his ribs hurt.

"Urrgh!" he grunted, and took a step back so he didn't fall over. A moment later, Luchs stepped forward and latched onto his arm, while Tiger put her arms around him from behind.

Faust glanced over at Hess, who looked as surprised as Faust himself felt. It seemed the other marionettes' maiden circuits had certain things set a bit higher than Tiger did. He started to smile. He was sure he could learn to live with this. And, according to the notes, each of them had their own specialty, so they would be able to help him run Gartlant.

This could all turn out very well, he thought. Provided that he didn't end up with any broken ribs.


	3. Part 2: History Beginning

Chapter 2: History Beginning

"Faust. Faust. Faust. Faust. Faust. Faust. Faust."

The army stood before Faust and the marionettes. They filled the largest chamber in the capital's palace, one that had been specially constructed for them - the older Fausts had given a lot of speeches to the army. It was staggering to look out at them, hundreds of men in identical helmets and uniforms and squarish dark glasses. They chanted his name over and over. It was like some kind of fascist metronome, he thought, and just about enough to drive him crazy. All of them wore the angular symbol of Gartlant on their shoulders. He couldn't help wondering how many of them truly stood by it, and how many just wore it because they wanted the job, or even worse, because they didn't want to be accused of treason.

"Faust. Faust. Faust. Faust. Faust. Faust."

He stood behind a podium at the head of the hall, with a giant flag of Gartlant behind him. For some reason, he felt like the previous nine leaders of Gartlant truly were hanging over him, watching him and waiting to see just what he was going to do. Was he going to give the people what they expected? Was he going to inspire the army to new heights by telling them that Gartlant was the strongest of Terra II's six nations, and that it was their destiny to conquer?

"Faust. Faust. Faust. Faust. Faust."

He looked out at them, at the men who were supposed to be his people, his subjects. His slaves, they might as well be. For all the history tracts he'd read, he hadn't seen a single one that talked about the individuals of Gartlant. Of all the leaders who had come before him, none of them had cared about their people, seen them as something other than tools. He'd heard that other countries treated marionettes as just tools. Both ideas pissed him off.

"Faust. Faust. Faust. Faust."

A glass of red wine sat by his right hand. He hadn't asked for it, but it was standard procedure for whenever the fuhrer made a speech. The people who ran this were so well-trained, he thought, so used to things being one way that they didn't even stop to think that the ruler might want things done differently. It was like inheriting an entire palace full of sheep. The army hadn't stopped chanting his name, so he guessed that they hadn't given any thought to the idea of someone new in charge either.

"Faust. Faust. Faust."

It was time to change that. It was time to tell them that things were going to be different now, there was a new Faust in charge. He wanted to tell them that he'd seen how things had been for the past 296 years and that he knew that he could make them better. All he needed was time and the right people. He stood taller, and looked out over the army, at hundreds of people who all looked the same. He opened his mouth to speak, but looked again, and paused.

"Faust. Faust."

This wasn't right. These weren't the people who would listen. They wouldn't give a shit. Whatever their reasons for joining the army, Faust guessed that they would rather hear that they would get to keep fighting. Proclaiming himself as the first Faust to actually look to improving the country by some other method than expansion wasn't going to go over well here. He didn't think they would even understand.

"Faust."

Faust picked up the glass of wine, then tossed it to the side, letting it shatter on the stage. The chanting died down, one by one, voice by voice. Maybe they were waiting for him to start speaking, he thought, or maybe they were wondering why he'd done that. It didn't matter; these weren't the people he wanted to see. He didn't have anything to say to them. He turned and strode off the stage, the marionettes falling into step beside him as he headed for the back door.

"Is something wrong, Faust-sama?" Tiger asked as soon as they were in the hallway that led back to the main part of the palace. "That wasn't the speech you had planned."

"That wasn't the audience I want," he said tersely. "If I'm going to give a speech about the future of Gartlant, it's going to be in front of people who actually care." He muttered under his breath. "Luchs?"

"Yes, Faust-sama?" The blue-haired marionette smiled at him, and not for the first time, he wondered just what kind of expression she was hiding behind her bangs.

"First, stop calling me '-sama.' Second, call for a car. We're going for a drive."

* * *

The black limo pulled out into Gartlant's capital city. Faust sat in the back with Tiger, Luchs, and Panther - the three of them actually sat on a seat across from him, as they argued too much about who got to sit next to him otherwise. The four of them looked out the tinted windows as they headed into the streets. He'd told the driver that he wanted a tour of the city, the whole city, the best and worst. From the driver's reaction, Faust couldn't help but wonder just how much of the city could actually be considered the 'best.' As they drove away from the palace, he had a feeling that he'd just left it.

Everything around was dark and dull, and it all seemed so coldly industrial, Faust thought as he watched the buildings pass by. Most of the people he saw looked dim and listless, gathered in small groups on corners or in alleys, standing in lines by the food vans that rationed out their daily bread. It didn't look like they got much else.

"This is depressing," Panther said after a while, though Faust caught a hint of anger in her voice. "What's wrong with these people? Can't they find something else to do than stand around?"

"Most don't have anything else to do," Luchs said. "According to the database, the army is Gartlant's main employer, second to manufacturing. Nearly everything goes toward the war." She looked over at Faust, as far as he could tell. "Expansion stopped when Faust the Ninth died, Faust-sama. All it takes is your order to start it again."

"Expansion," Faust grumbled as he kept looking out the window. "We could fit the entire population in the capital city without a problem, and they talked about expansion." He huffed. "I don't even know why people stay here."

"It seems to be mostly because of family, Faust-sama," Luchs reported. "Family and friends, or just not wanting to undertake moving. Also. . . ."

He turned to look at her, and saw that she was shrinking back in her seat a bit. "What, Luchs?"

"It's nothing, Faust-sama."

"Luchs!" He grimaced, then brushed away the hair that was falling in his face. "I told you--" He paused, then took a deep breath. "I told you, I want you to say what you want. I'm not going to hit you, or get mad at you, for telling me the truth. It's that programming again, right? The programming that makes it so you're supposed to be my servants?"

Luchs nodded, as did the others. "I'm sorry, Faust-sama, but it's something we're not supposed to override."

"It's bullshit," Faust said, more harshly than he meant to. "Sorry. But I'm ordering you to delete that programming." He glanced at Tiger. "You did that years ago, right?"

"Of course, Faust-sama," Tiger said with a smile.

Luchs glanced at the other two, looking nervous. Panther seemed unsure, but Tiger nodded. Luchs straightened herself and continued. "As I was going to say, Faust-sama, Gartlant isn't looked on highly by the other countries. People might be afraid of moving away because they might think that they won't be taken in elsewhere."

Faust growled through his teeth and looked back to the grey city. "So this," he mused, "is what they've left for me."

"What do you mean, Faust-sama?" Tiger asked, looking concerned.

"A country that wants war in a peaceful world. A place that the other countries hate. People who either join the army or do nothing. And only those who chant our name - my name - to be proud of Gartlant." He sighed, frowning.

"It stinks," Panther said bluntly. "So what are you going to do, Faust-sama?"

He turned and looked at Panther. For the first time he'd seen, she had a hard look on her face, as though she wanted to get something done. He started to smile. It was just as he'd thought - he couldn't rely on anyone else but them. If he were anyone else, he thought, he would be in trouble, as one man and three marionettes couldn't do much for an entire nation. But if that one man was the leader of that nation. . . .

* * *

No matter how much he rejected the ideas and ways of his predecessors, no matter how much he thought they'd screwed up the country or beaten down the people or run the place like it was their own personal war-toy, Faust the Tenth had to admit one thing.

He really, really liked the throne.

He was sitting in it now, the monolith with a red carpet leading up to it, listing off tasks to the small army of court lackeys he'd inherited. Most of them he hardly knew, but for them, all that mattered was that he was Faust. Any problems they had with the new ideas he was about to implement they would likely keep to themselves. He considered that for a moment, then made a mental note to hire some actual advisors, ones who weren't so well-trained.

"All right," Faust began, "take this down." He glanced over to the marionettes. "You're recording this, Luchs?"

"Of course, Faust-sama," she said. "Your wish is my command."

He glowered at her for a moment, and she smiled brightly at him. He sighed.

"All right." Faust steepled his fingers before himself, and began. "I've spent most of my life learning about how things work around here, and it's time for some changes. Some of these have already started, but I expect everything I tell you to be implemented within a month. Everyone got that?" The yes-men nodded. "Good. First, I'm disbanding three-fourths of the army. All bids for expansion or threats of war on other countries are canceled as of now."

He glanced around, and saw that some of them wanted to speak up, but didn't. Normally, he wouldn't have liked that, but right now it suited him. If he stopped to listen to everyone who said it couldn't be done, they'd turn out to be right.

"We'll be turning that part of the army into a police force and a relief force. Plans for that are already in place and they're scheduled to start forming their new groups tomorrow. We've also reset the main computer's ration allowances and everything that goes with it for peace-time, that's already going. People started receiving larger food rations two days ago." He glanced over to the marionettes. "Any word on how that plan's going so far?"

"Nothing yet, Faust-sama," Panther said, then chuckled. "Most people refuse to believe it."

Faust frowned. "Figures. Anyway. I want some new people in here," he said, tapping on the throne's armrest. "Economists, scientists, anyone who can help us get back on the right track and make it so we don't have to go to war just to keep the country going. Bring them in from other countries if you have to, but get them here. Everybody else gets by without declaring war on each other all the time, I want to do the same.

"Next, marionettes." He paused to give a smile to his three, though he had to admit that he felt they were more human than some of the people in the room. "I know they're only used around the palace, so we'll start using those ones to get people used to the idea of them being around. I want them to start spreading the word of the changes, no matter what's happening. Make sure they have all the information they need, because people are going to ask questions. I also want the marionettes accompanied by two people from the new police force. Anyone who tries to hurt the marionettes in any way is to be stopped."

"Fuhrer?"

Faust paused, surprised that one of the lackeys had spoken up. "What?"

"Do you think that's wise? Most people outside the palace think of marionettes as just for combat, they've never seen them outside of a patrol. A lot of people are scared of them."

"Really?" Faust asked with a frown. The others in the room nodded. He glanced over at his marionettes. "Why didn't anybody tell me about this?"

The marionettes looked at each other, seeming almost nervous. Faust continued to frown, and drummed his fingers on the armrest of his throne. The yes-men all looked scared, and some were holding their notes before themselves, as though trying to hide behind them.

"I'm waiting for an answer," Faust said darkly.

"We didn't . . . didn't think it was your concern, fuhrer!" one of the yes-men said from behind his notes. "I'm sorry, but you've never made any note about marionettes one way or another to us before, so I thought - we thought--"

"Hold on," Faust said, and leaned forward in the throne. "What's your name?"

The man lowered his notes, though he looked very reluctant to do so. "Hauser, fuhrer," he said nervously.

"Then let's get something straight, Hauser, same with the rest of you," Faust said, putting a hand to his chin and looking at the semicircle of yes-men. "I'm not the old man. I'm not the Faust you've been serving for however long you've been working here. I'm not going to punish you for bringing something up that I missed." He managed a smile. "I might even reward you." That should be enough to make them think differently, he thought as he leaned back in his throne. "Now, about the marionettes. If people are afraid of them, then dress them differently. Make them look . . . I don't know, nicer. Take a look at what they wear in other countries if you have to, but make it so they come off better. Got that?"

There was a chorus of "yes, fuhrer."

"Good. Next order: I know we're in bad with the other countries. I want diplomats sent to all of them - peace talks, trade deals, all of that. I want people who'll negotiate." He paused. "People with spines who'll negotiate. Just because I want to do things right doesn't mean we're going to give in." He grinned at that, wondering if it looked triumphant or evil. He remembered that the old man's grin always looked evil, and thought that he'd have to work on it to not look the same. Judging by the looks on the yes-men's faces, he guessed he was right.

"All right, that's enough for today. That should stir things up enough to get people going." He stood, pushed his cape back behind himself, then paused. "One last order." He glanced down at the advisors. "Get me a tailor, a good one. Someone from Peterburg or Romana. I'm tired of this pseudo-military crap."

He started to smile as he headed down from the throne, and grinned at the marionettes as they joined him. It was a start, he thought, a large step but only the first. There was still so much more to do. But he could do it. After all, he did have the entire country to work with. What could possibly go wrong?

* * *

"What do you mean," Faust hissed through clenched teeth, "the military's rebelling?"

"Just what I said, fuhrer," General Goddel said, his hand snapping down from a proud salute. "There were some who agreed with your orders, and some were glad to serve as police or relief workers. But it's still an army, and some of them still want to conquer."

Faust glowered, and slumped in the throne for a moment. This wasn't supposed to happen. "What've they done so far?" he asked.

"Some are attacking the food depots," Goddel began, running a finger down his long, thin mustache. "They say that the army needs food more than the common citizens, and that they're just taking what's theirs. Others are going after the police and relief workers, saying that they're traitors. We've managed to keep them from getting to the tanks, but some of my officers think it's only a matter of time."

Faust curled his lip, then straightened. "Hess!"

"Yes, fuhrer?" Hess asked, appearing out of the shadows in a corner of the throne room.

"First, stop doing that," Faust said with a glare. "Second. The military sabers, they're under my command, right?"

"An order from the fuhrer overrides all other programming," Hess said, his expression unreadable.

"Have any of the rebels made use of the marionettes?" Faust asked the general. When Goddel shook his head, Faust continued. "Give the sabers the order that they're to subdue any military dissenters. Fight them if they have to, but don't kill them." He paused. "I'll leave what to do with the dissenters up to you, General. But if any of them try anything like this again, they'll be imprisoned. Got that?"

"Yes, fuhrer," Goddel said.

"Dismissed," Faust said. "Get to it." He looked back to Hess as the general left the room, but waited until Goddel was gone before speaking. "Keep an eye on him, Hess. You three also," he said, turning to look at the three marionettes.

Panther sneered. "He's slimy," she spat. "I don't like him. Can I pull off his mustache?"

"I'm not sure you can trust him, Faust-sama," Luchs said.

"Really," Faust said, trying to keep the sarcasm out of his voice. "Why do you say that?"

"I was monitoring him, Faust-sama," Luchs said, a hint of pride in her voice. "I don't know if he was lying, but I don't think he was telling the whole truth."

"We'll protect you, Faust-sama," Tiger added. "Just in case."

"I know," Faust said with a small smile. He stood and stretched, then muttered. The past week had been grueling.

The changes he'd wanted to set into motion weren't going nearly as well as he'd thought. Sure, the people of Gartlant were doing better, from what he heard, partly because of the new food rations and partly because of the relief groups. Having a regular police force instead of just army patrols had also made the streets safer, and crime was down. At least, that was what he could tell so far, as there hadn't been much in the way of life quality surveys or crime reports for the past fifty years or so.

Relations with the other countries were starting to improve, though slowly. His diplomats had met with people from Romana and New Texas, and those meetings had gone well - trade deals were already in the making, with Romana sending over some economists and other consultants to help him get the country running differently. Trade deals were also in progress with Xian, though they'd been silent on sending any of their own people to assist. Things were still strained with Japoness and Peterburg, as those had been the countries on Faust IX's hit list for expansion. Faust still wondered what the old man had been thinking, then shrugged it off. Whatever he'd been thinking, it had probably been the fault of one of the other Fausts.

Faust headed down the stairs that led to the throne and left the room, the three marionettes by his side as always. There was still much to do. There always was, and he was starting to think that there always would be. But that was the way it had to be, to get things running the way they should.

Luchs latched onto his left arm as soon as they were out of the throne room. "You seem to be under a lot of stress, Faust-sama. Would you like me to cook you something for dinner tonight?"

"A massage would be better, wouldn't it, Faust-sama?" Panther asked, and squeezed his shoulder. "I read a book in the library that shows a technique from Japoness, you just need to lay on your stomach and I walk--"

"That's not what Faust-sama needs!" Luchs said emphatically. Faust was pretty sure that she was giving Panther a dirty look, but it was hard to tell. "A home-cooked meal will calm him and--"

Faust put his free hand to his head. "Panther, you can give me a massage while Luchs cooks. Will that get you two to stop arguing?"

"Yes, Faust-sama," the two of them said in unison.

Faust sighed again, and glanced down to see Tiger smiling at him. He smiled back. There was something wonderfully constant about her quiet affection that he still found comforting. Somehow, he knew that without the three of them, he'd never make it through the trials to come.

* * *

He was floating among the stars, staring out at them from inside a giant metal ship that sailed through the depths of space. He had a strange sense of loss, as though he was leaving something behind and couldn't tell what it was but regretted it nonetheless. There was someone with him, floating alongside him in a strange tunnel of sorts. Somehow, he knew who she was, knew it was a she, a real she and not a marionette. He tried to turn his head, but couldn't look at her. It was incredibly frustrating, like seeing something reflected in a mirror that disappears as soon as you turn to see it. He tried to force himself to turn, to see what or who he was dreaming about, and wrenched his head to the side to see-

Nothing. Darkness. Faust blinked a few times, realized that he was awake, and groaned as his stomach felt like it was rolling from one side to the other. He wasn't quite sure where Luchs had found the ingredients for her stew, but after Panther had given him a massage he'd felt obligated to eat Luchs's cooking. At least his back ached less than his stomach. He sat up, and immediately regretted it. He groaned again, and started to get out of bed, hoping he could make it to the bathroom in time.

"Faust-sama?"

He raised his head, his eyes bleary, and saw Tiger's silhouette in the doorway. For a moment, he remembered her coming for him when he'd awakened screaming after being subjected to Hess's machine. It still made him feel better to see her there.

"Are you all right, Faust-sama?" She approached the bed, but stopped a few feet away, standing ready.

"I'll live," Faust muttered, then took a few deep breaths, trying to calm his stomach. "Remind me. First thing tomorrow, I'm hiring someone to teach Luchs to cook."

"Yes, Faust-sama," she said, though she was smiling. "Do you want me to stay here?"

He started to say something, then blinked at her, realizing for the first time. . . . "You three stay outside my door when I'm sleeping?" he asked.

"Of course, Faust-sama," Tiger said with a nod. Despite it being night, she was still wearing her hat. "We sleep in shifts. We're supposed to keep you safe."

"More programming," Faust grumbled as he started to lay back down. "I told you, I don't--"

"We want to keep you safe," Tiger interrupted. Faust looked at her, surprised. "You said that you wanted us to say what we felt. This is something we all agreed on." She smiled at him. "You're very important to us, Faust-sama."

Faust paused for a moment, then gave her a weary smile. "Thank you, Tiger," he said. "You're important to me too, all three of you. Just make sure you get enough sleep."

"We will, Faust-sama."

He lay back down, and she turned and started to leave. The last thing he heard before dozing off again was her voice.

"Sleep well, Faust-sama. We'll be outside if you need us."


	4. Part 3: A Small Problem

Chapter 3: A Small Problem

Two days later, Luchs awakened Faust in the middle of the night, shaking him and urging him to get up quickly.

"I'm awake," Faust muttered, trying to pull himself together. He'd been having that dream again, about being out among the stars in the ship with the woman, and he'd been close to seeing who she was. He shook his head to clear it. "What's happening?"

"The army's storming the palace, Faust-sama."

"What?" Faust came completely awake in a second, and pulled himself out of bed. "What happened? When did this start? And why aren't the military's marionettes taking care of it?"

Luchs paused, and Faust saw her eyes start to glow blue behind her bangs. "They've nearly breached the front gate," she said. "There are enough troops inside to hold them back for a while. I'm not getting anything about the marionettes, something might have happened." The light faded, and she looked at him. "We should get you to the command center, Faust-sama."

"Right. Just let me get dressed." He grinned at the confused look on her face. "They're still my army, Luchs. I'm not going to face them down in my boxer shorts."

She smiled, and once again, he saw the hint of something not-quite-innocent in her face. "Of course, Faust-sama. Shall I wait outside, or would you like my help?"

"I'll be fine," Faust said flatly, and he swore he heard her giggle as she walked back toward the door and closed it behind her. He shook his head, making a mental note to try to figure her out later, and dressed quickly. Despite his request for a tailor over a week ago, today he dressed in the standard military-style clothes and cape. He had to show them that he was their fuhrer.

Luchs fell into step beside him as he strode out of his room, and Tiger joined them at the end of the hall. She looked up at him as they headed toward the command center.

"Faust-sama! Nobody's come this way," she said with a proud smile. "Panther is down the hall, she drew for the first defense."

"Good," Faust said with a nod, "thank you. When did this start?"

"Less than ten minutes ago, Faust-sama," Luchs said. "I picked up something from the control room a few hours before sunrise, someone called in to report unusual movement outside the palace. Before any of the palace guard could get together, the groups of the army came together and started to rush." Her eyes glowed blue again for a moment, then she said, "It seems that they'll break down the gates in another seven minutes."

Faust glowered. He knew that he could get either to the command center or to the throne room by then, but not both. "We can stop this," he said. "Come on."

"Yes, Faust-sama," the two marionettes said in unison.

They turned down the wide, dark hallway, and before they'd gone halfway, the sound of tromping boots came from in front of them. Luchs and Tiger immediately moved in front of Faust. Tiger drew a unusual kind of whip with a curved guard from her belt, and small throwing blades snapped into place between Luchs's fingers.

"Don't kill them," Faust said as a dozen Gartlant soldiers started marching toward them. He smiled grimly. "Leave them alive to stand trial."

The battle was as brief as it was merciless. Tiger and Luchs, after putting away their weapons, beat the Gartlant soldiers into the floor one by one. One straggler attempted to run away down the hall, but as Faust watched, Panther leaped out of a connecting hallway at the intersection and slammed him into a wall. She turned to look at Faust and the others as the man slumped to the floor.

Panther's upper lip curled. "Faust-sama was in danger, and you didn't call for me?"

"He was in no danger," Luchs said smoothly. Faust couldn't see her face, but he knew she had to be smiling.

"We need to get to the control room," Faust said, interrupting them. It was amusing to watch, but they didn't have time for the two marionettes to fight it out. Panther gave him a smart salute and a wide grin, then fell into step with the others, and the four of them headed toward the command room. He would take care of this, Faust thought, and he'd do it now.

"Why aren't the palace marionettes holding them back?" Faust asked, partly to himself. "They should be more than enough to deal with an army."

"I haven't seen any of them," Panther said, gritting her teeth. "Can we find who did this and kill him, Faust-sama?"

"Maybe," Faust said darkly, then watched Panther smile again. "First, I want to get the marionettes to stop the army outside, they can do it without hurting any of them. Then we'll find out who was just following orders and who needs to be hurt."

"But wouldn't that be all of them, if they're trying to break in, Faust-sama?" Tiger asked.

Faust shook his head. "Luchs, they're organized, aren't they? This wasn't just the army leading a charge?"

"From what I can tell, Faust-sama," Luchs said, "this was an organized movement. Their attack pattern is a traditional one."

"Hah!" Faust grinned, though the marionettes gave him curious looks. "Just what I thought. Look, I studied the ways of war when I was growing up, the old man said I had to. Anyway, this isn't the kind of thing that the soldiers organize by themselves." He turned down another hallway. They were nearly to the control room. "No, one of the officers started this. Someone got the troops all riled up, and said that they were going to take back Gartlant or something like that. It's happened before, back in the reign of Faust the Fourth."

"Heh," Panther chuckled. "How did he deal with it?"

"Killed everyone involved," Faust said with a shrug. "But that's not my style."

They turned the corner to the hall that ended with the control room, and suddenly the marionettes snapped their arms out, blocking Faust from entering the hall. Clouds of green gas floated along the floor, drifting and billowing in the cold air from the command center. Luchs's eyes glowed for a moment, then she said, "Sleeping gas. It's inert now."

Faust frowned deeply. "Then let's go find out who's responsible," he said, "and fix this problem."

He strode down the hall, the marionettes both at his side and in front of him, keeping an eye out for any danger. The clouds of green gas were still pouring out of the room, but when they cleared, the chairs of the command room became visible. There were men slumped in the chairs or sprawled out on the floor, unconscious. Only one chair was occupied, by a man who was wearing a gas mask and typing frantically at a keyboard.

"Look, Faust-sama!" Panther said, cracking her knuckles. "A problem!"

"Get him," Faust said, though Panther was already halfway to the chair. Three seconds later, the man was flat on his stomach with three limbs pinned and his gas mask halfway off. Faust couldn't help grinning at that. He then turned to Tiger and said, "Check on the others, make sure they're still alive."

"Yes, Faust-sama," she said, and stepped away.

Faust walked over to the pinned man, pulled his mask the rest of the way off, and stomped his boot right next to the other man's ear. "You have betrayed your fuhrer and your country," he said, letting anger seep into his voice, "but if you tell me who's responsible for this and what you're doing in here, I might be kinder when it comes to your punishment."

"I . . . I. . . ." The man's jaw quivered, and he looked ready to start crying.

Faust grumbled. Whoever planned this couldn't be all that much of a threat if someone like this was in charge of something as crucial as taking over the control room. Always use the best man for the job; he'd read that in the treatises about the arts of war. But that kind of lecture could wait. He bent toward the man, and said, "Tell me. Now."

"I don't know who's in charge, fuhrer!" the man blurted. "I just got the order last night. My commanding officer said told me not to ask questions."

"Then you'll be glad to answer some," Faust said flatly. "What were you doing here?"

"Turning off the combat marionettes, fuhrer," the soldier whined. "I had to, they told me it was important or else the plan wouldn't work." He seemed utterly focused on Faust's boot.

"They were right," Faust said through his teeth. "Luchs!"

"Yes, Faust-sama?" she answered from his side.

"Get the combat marionettes going again," he said, "and tell me what's happening at the front gates. I want the marionettes at the gates and ready to subdue anyone who breaks in." He looked down at the soldier again as Luchs got to work. "Keep talking."

"All I heard was that one of the generals was planning to throw you out," the soldier said, his voice quivering. "It's been whispered around the barracks for the past week or so. Some people said that it wouldn't work, others said that we shouldn't, but a lot of people who were still in the army thought it was a good idea."

"And you were forced into it? Or did you go willingly?"

"I . . . I was just following orders, fuhrer!"

"Orders that go against your fuhrer," Faust said, slowly and deliberately lowering his head to be near the soldier's, "are treason. You'll be dealt with, just like the others." He straightened, and turned to Luchs. "How does it look outside?"

"Better than it did a moment ago, Faust-sama," Luchs said, then turned to him and smiled. "The combat marionettes are helping the soldiers inside, and a regiment of them just moved outside from the roof. They should be intercepting the men at the gates right about now."

Faust looked to the screen, and watched as a massive group of red-haired battle sabers descended upon the crowd of soldiers at the gate. There were flashes of blue among the dark uniforms, the marionettes using the tasers that Hess had added to them by Faust's orders. Many of the soldiers tried to flee, but in about two minutes, the marionettes had the entire lot of them taken down.

"Excellent," Faust said with a grin. "Give them orders, from me, to round up the traitors and have them imprisoned. We'll deal with them later." He stopped smiling, and narrowed his eyes. "Luchs, get me cameras all over the palace. I want to see who's waiting around looking like they're expecting something to happen."

"Who do you think planned this, Faust-sama?" Panther asked, planting her boot on the soldier's back even though he'd shown no sign of wanting to move.

"One of the generals, as he said," Faust said. "See if you can get the generals on screen also, Luchs."

A moment later, all the screens in the command room lit up, showing the palace almost in its entirety. Most of the rooms held sleeping people, though some were empty, and Faust took note of those. The activity outside the front gate had died down, and there were still soldiers standing guard inside the front gate; probably awaiting orders, he thought. He would have to see about rewarding them for remaining faithful to their country. He strode over to the monitors that showed the generals, then stopped.

Faust cursed. "I shouldn't be surprised," he said, then turned to the marionettes. "Come on," he said, then strode for the door, his cape billowing behind him.

"Where are we going, Faust-sama?" Tiger asked as she fell into step next to him.

"The throne room."

* * *

Faust kept a constant glower on his face as he strode down the high-ceilinged chamber that led to the throne room. He should have seen this coming, he thought. For all the studying he'd done, for everything that he'd read and all the history he'd slogged through, he should have realized what would happen if he made such massive changes in the way the country works so soon. If he'd just taken a moment to interpret history. . . . He shook his head. He'd done something stupid, but there was nothing he could do about it now. What he could do was stop the rest of the would-be upstart's plans and bring the man down.

The doors to the throne room, ten feet tall and emblazoned with a gold-outlined symbol of Gartlant, stood closed as Faust approached. Panther started to reach for them as soon as she was close enough, but Faust raised a hand to stop her.

"Luchs," Faust said, "can you tell if there's anyone on the other side of the door?"

Luchs's eyes glowed blue for a moment, then she looked up to Faust. "I'm sensing about thirty people inside, Faust-sama. My guess is they're a patrol unit by how they're standing. There's also someone sitting on the throne."

Panther snarled, and held up her hand, the edge of it glowing blue. "Let us take care of them, Faust-sama. They won't touch you."

"I'm not worried about that," Faust said with a small smile. "Take out the men as before, don't kill them. Whoever's on the throne, make sure he can still talk." He stepped back as the three of them grouped in front of him, then said, "Go."

Tiger kicked the doors open, and the four of them stepped into the room, greeted by thirty Gartlant soldiers with guns trained on them. Faust did his best not to flinch.

"You would turn against your fuhrer?" he boomed. "Tiger, Luchs, Panther!"

Luchs and Panther leaped into the fray, while Tiger stayed in front of Faust with her whip, striking out at the soldiers from where she stood. The marionettes moved faster than he'd ever seen before, and none of the soldiers had a chance to train a gun on them, let alone fire. A few moments later, the battle was over. Luchs stood in the middle of the room, looking over the fallen soldiers, while Panther jumped up to the throne. She was standing in front of whoever was sitting there, but as Faust watched, her hand snapped to one side, knocking a gun away. She reached for the throne, turned, and hurled General Goddel into the center of the room, where he landed on a pile of unconscious soldiers.

"Goddel," Faust said calmly. "I'm really not surprised."

"Fuhrer," Goddel said weakly.

"Can I kill him, Faust-sama?" Panther asked, looking eager to do just that.

"Not yet," Faust said, then strode toward Goddel and planted his boot next to the other man's head, just as he'd done with the soldier in the control room. "You have a lot of explaining to do, Goddel. Now start talking or Panther gets to kill you."

Goddel pulled himself into a kneeling position, and actually laughed, then cried out as Panther pulled his arms behind his back and held them there. "You're a fool, Faust. Did you really think that you could get rid of most of the army and still lead the country? I thought you'd studied." His expression turned serious. "Countries that have great armies need strong leaders. You're weaker than Faust IX, so your reign ends today."

"Really," Faust said, drawing out the word. "I'm curious, Goddel. What makes you say that?"

"I've spent my whole life watching Faust, seeing what it means to be Faust, so I knew how you'd react. How you got those insipid ideas, I don't know, but I knew that you'd come right to the throne if it was threatened. While you've been getting here, the army - under my control, of course - has breached the gates and taken over the palace. More men than even your marionettes can deal with will be here any moment." Goddel struggled against Panther's grip again, still glaring up at Faust.

Faust said nothing, but leaned back on one leg as though he was waiting for something. He glanced down to his wrist, even though he wasn't wearing a watch, then yawned a moment later. When Goddel started to look nervous, Faust did his best to act like he'd just remembered something.

"Ah, that's right. I had Luchs take control of the palace's sabers about five minutes ago. Your men outside the gate were defeated about . . . three minutes ago." He started to grin as Goddel's mouth dropped open. "I've studied too, Goddel, probably more than you, because the old man said I had to. Tell me, do you know what the main difference is between how Gartlant's succession works and how they do it in other countries?" Faust started to approach the throne, and continued when Goddel didn't say anything. "Gartlant is the only country that forces the memories of its previous rulers into the new cloned child who's going to rule. But you see," he continued, then paused at the short flight of stairs that led to the throne, "Gartlant stopped doing that a while ago. Do you know how long?"

"H-how long ago?" Goddel asked. He had gone completely pale.

"Oh, about seven years." Faust grinned at Goddel, this time going for the evil effect. By the look on the general's face, it seemed to be working. "You see, I'm not the Faust you knew. I'm the one who's going to make Gartlant the greatest nation on Terra II." He reached down and grabbed the front of Goddel's uniform, and tore off the symbols of rank the general wore. He then ascended the stairs to the throne, Luchs and Tiger at his side. He turned to glare down at Goddel, whom Panther turned to face Faust, and said, "And I'm going to do it without a war. Pity you won't be around to see it.

"Tiger! Luchs! Panther!"

"Yes, Faust-sama!" the three marionettes said in unison.

"See to it that Goddel is imprisoned, he'll be put on trial later," Faust said with a grim smile, then seated himself on his throne. "Then send an announcement across the city. I'll be giving a speech today."

* * *

Faust stood behind a podium again, this time before a crowd of all the people of Gartlant's capital city. For the first time in recent history, the gates had been thrown open, and the populace of Gartlant had been let into the palace, into the great chamber that led to the throne room, to hear a speech by their fuhrer. He could see surprise on many of their faces, mostly those who had lived their entire lives under Faust IX and expected to be beaten down. Some of the younger men, though, were gazing around as though they had never seen such a place, and he knew that it was true. He smiled to himself. This was where things would start changing. This was where he was going to prove to the old man that the old ways were wrong.

"People of Gartlant," he began, raising his hands for silence over the murmuring crowd, "I stand before you with news of the future. Of your future, of our future, of Gartlant's future." Sure, he thought, it was a formal and boring beginning, but it set him up for what he had to say. And it would probably surprise the older men to hear a Faust talking about 'our future.'

"I know that many of you have lived your lives under the thumb of my predecessor, the stodgy old man known as Faust the Ninth." He paused, and chuckled at the expressions he could see and the whispers that crossed the crowd. "Yes, I know, that's not what you expected to hear from me. But I'm not like him, and I'm not going to be doing things the way he did." That enough was worth a cheer, he thought, but nobody said a thing. He shrugged. They probably weren't used to cheering at anything that Faust said.

"I grew up reading histories, stories about all of Terra II, about the brave men who crashed here from space and turned this planet into our new home. And one thing struck me with everything I read: Gartlant was the only country that treated its people like they were worth less than the marionettes our ancestors created. I don't know how this started, but I'm telling you now that it ends. Right now.

"I want to change things - for Gartlant, for you, and yes, for myself. I'm sure that you've noticed that your daily rations have been increased." He paused, and chuckled as a few people cheered. "Yes, I did that, it wasn't a mistake in the programming. But I don't think you should have to stand around a truck all day to get your food."

Faust held out his hand, and gestured to the tall man with straight brown hair who was standing off to the left. Tiger, Luchs, and Panther, of course, stood at his right. "This is Lucius Urmanov, he's from Romana, and he's an economist. He's going to be helping me get Gartlant's economy going, so that we can create jobs for all of you." Faust pointed out at the crowd, tracing from one side to the other. "I want to make Gartlant the greatest nation on Terra II, and I want each and every one of you to be proud to live here, to work here, to call Gartlant your home!"

They did cheer at that, and Faust stood taller. That was what he'd been wanting to say, and the cheer was what he'd been waiting to hear. He doubted anyone but the army had ever cheered Faust the Ninth. He could almost see the old man's face in his mind, and he wanted to laugh.

"My people," he continued, "I'm not going to lie to you and say that it'll be easy. We have a rough road ahead of us. But I think we can do this. I want to give all of you a chance, and by doing that, I want to give Gartlant a chance. If you are with me. . . ." He took the microphone in hand and turned to the giant flag of Gartlant that hung behind him, moved from where the previous Fausts had given speeches to the military. "If you are with me, then salute the flag of your home country . . . not because you have to, but because you want to."

He saluted, then glanced over his shoulder. Nearly everybody was holding up their right hands, and a great many of them were grinning right at him. This was what he had been waiting for, he thought; this was what it should mean to be a leader. This was his nation, these were his people, and he would not let them down.


	5. Part 4: The Trouble With Marionettes

Chapter 4: The Trouble With Marionettes

Six months passed, and all was well in Gartlant.

Perhaps not all, Faust reflected as he strode toward the throne room, Tiger, Luchs, and Panther at his side as always. The economy could be going better; the earlier Fausts had done their best to strip the country of most of its natural resources, so establishing trade with the rest of Terra II hadn't been easy. However, the economists he'd hired were doing their job well enough, so he was confident things would improve on that front. The fact that unemployment had dropped to less than ten percent was a sure sign of that, he thought. Gartlant and its people were actually producing products to sell instead of weaponry these days, and according to news from the other nations, they were gaining a good reputation.

Gartlant was also looking better, he knew that - Hess had developed some kind of cloud-seeding satellite that had managed to clean up most of the industrial pollution, so that the sky over Gartlant was actually blue more often than not. Of course, Terra II's weather being what it was, the satellites had to be replaced every few months after being struck down by high plasma clouds, but there was more than enough money in the treasury to cover that, now that they didn't have to finance wars anymore.

However, not everything was going according to his plans, and that was what today's meeting was for, that was why it was imperative that the three marionettes were with him. As they reached the throne room doors, he stopped, and looked at them each in turn.

"I know you're used to being with me at the meetings," Faust began, and the three of them nodded. "I also know that you're usually bored." He grinned as Luchs blushed, Tiger looked sheepish, and Panther nodded firmly.

"It's not always that bad, Faust-sama," Luchs said, still looking oddly shy. "You have a country to run, and our place is with you."

"I know," Faust said. "And thanks for that." He lowered his voice. "Half the time I don't want to be there either; I wish they'd just do all their arguing before I showed up."

"It's what you have to do, Faust-sama," Tiger said. She looked up at him from under the brim of her cap, and smiled. "You told us that, remember?"

"In fact, I think your exact words were that all the idiots would spend all day arguing if you didn't show up to make the decisions," Panther said. She smirked when Faust glowered at her. "I'm sure Luchs could play it back if you wish, Faust-sama."

"I do have it recorded," Luchs said, giving him half a smile. By now, Faust was fully convinced that any innocence she portrayed was a complete and total act.

Faust started to say something, then sighed. "I know I've said I couldn't run the country without you," he said, a wry smile on his face, "but every once in a while, you three make me start to wonder."

Their reaction was not at all what he'd expected.

Within about two seconds, all three marionettes were clinging to him, and all he could make out was a blend of all three of them begging him not to turn them away, not to reject them. He paused, stunned, then frowned as he looked down at them.

It was so easy to forget that they weren't human. Calling them marionettes was more of a formality than anything else to him. But he knew that they weren't entirely here by choice; the programming they'd been given to be faithful to him and to stay by his side was something that they couldn't escape, something that they couldn't simply ignore. He'd never joked about doing his work without them before, and that, he thought, must be why they'd reacted so emotionally. He knew that he didn't want them to leave, not at all - it would feel like he didn't have anyone who saw him as more than just their ruler. He shuddered at the thought.

"I'm sorry," Faust said quietly, and managed to free his arms enough to wrap them around the three marionettes, pulling them close. "I didn't mean that." They looked up at him, together, and he could see something like sadness in their eyes, mingled with hope. "I'm not going to send you away," he said, and sighed heavily. "I'd never do that."

They didn't say anything. He almost expected to see tears in their eyes, but caught himself. That couldn't happen, even with the maiden circuit. The maiden circuit. . . .

Faust groaned, and freed one hand to hold it to his forehead. "I can't believe it," he said, mostly to himself. "I should have thought of that months ago."

"What is it, Faust-sama?" Tiger asked. She and the others were still clinging to him.

"You'll see, but we need to get the reports from this meeting first," he said. "I promise you three I'm not going to send you away. But I will ask you to let go of me so we can go take care of this."

For a moment, he thought they weren't going to listen to him. But they finally let him go, and he turned and opened the doors to the throne room.

As always during meetings, the room was set up differently. The raised platform that the throne sat upon was lowered to be even with the rest of the floor, and a long table with chairs for everyone sat before the throne. Faust, of course, still sat at the head of the table, but he'd found that it made for more comfortable meetings if everyone else didn't have to stand. A diplomat from Peterburg had made the suggestion, and Faust had gladly gone along with it, as it had taken three months to even get someone from Peterburg into the country for diplomatic discussions.

The men gathered at the table stood and saluted as Faust strode into the room, and he nodded at them all as he headed for the throne. Once he had seated himself, they took their seats again, and he leaned forward and put his hands on the table.

"Urmanov," Faust began, looking to the economist from Romana. The man had proven to be a great help in keeping Gartlant running smoothly and implementing the new programs that Faust wanted, so Faust had made him one of his chief advisors. "You have the report on the marionette situation?"

"Of course, fuhrer," Urmanov said. He picked up a pile of stacked papers and started reading from the first page. "We took a survey of the city's population, and the results are the same as they were last month, and the month before." He looked at Faust. "Most people still see marionettes as just for combat. Even the people who have enough money don't want to buy one. Some of them are afraid that their programming will kick in and they'll start destroying their houses, others don't think that they're safe." He cleared his throat. "Of those surveyed who said they might buy a marionette, which wasn't many, the main reason they wanted one was for help at work - accounting, data processing, the boring jobs."

"Tools," Faust said distastefully. "If they don't see marionettes as robot soldiers, they see them as tools." He frowned, and his right hand snapped into the position to hold a wine glass for a second before he caught himself. "Hauser, you were also on the committee for this. What do you think?"

Hauser folded his hands in front of himself, then unfolded them, then folded them again. The older advisor still had trouble saying what he thought, even after half a year.

Faust frowned at him. "Hauser," he said with some emphasis.

"Yes, fuhrer," Hauser said nervously, then swallowed. "If I may say so--"

"You always may, you know that," Faust said flatly.

"Right, fuhrer." Hauser paused. "I'm not sure how much you've seen of the marionettes that are being sold, fuhrer, but they aren't anything more than tools." He gestured toward Tiger, Luchs, and Panther. "They're dressed in fairly ordinary clothing, nothing like your three, and their faces are always so . . . blank, I suppose." He held up his hands, and shrugged.

"I've seen much the same, fuhrer," a younger advisor said from the end of the table - Faust recognized him as Murphy, from New Texas. "And I wanted to ask you what made yours different, and if it was possible to make other marionettes the same."

Faust started to smile. "Good idea. I was thinking of much the same thing," he said, then grinned at Murphy, who looked quite surprised. "Hess!"

"Yes, fuhrer?" Hess asked, stepping out of the shadows on the left side of Faust's throne. Several of the advisors jumped in surprise, but Faust didn't even blink.

"First," Faust began, "stop doing that. Second, meet me in your lab after this meeting is over. I'll have need of your expertise."

"Very well, fuhrer," Hess said, then turned and stepped back into the darkness.

"What makes Tiger, Luchs, and Panther different," Faust said to the group of advisors, "is some technology from our ancestors, something called a maiden circuit. It makes it so they can experience emotions, and I'm very grateful for it." He threw a smile to the marionettes, who stood proudly. "I don't know if we have the technology to duplicate it, but I'm sure that we can come up with something that can come close." He glanced at Urmanov. "Do you know of anyone from Romana who might have some expertise in this area?"

Urmanov put a hand to his mouth, and "hrrrrrm"ed. "I might, fuhrer, but I'd have to make some calls," he said.

"Do that," Faust said with a nod. He leaned back in the throne. There was still much to do, he thought. But if he could get this done, and get it done properly, then he would be one step closer to his vision for Gartlant.

* * *

Later that day, Faust stood with Hess down in the seven-floors-deep basement, in the same room that had held Luchs and Panther before he awakened them. Luchs and Panther were now back in the pods where they'd been sleeping, and Tiger lay in a third pod. Faust looked at a row of monitors showing diagnostics of the marionettes while Hess explained them to him.

"You see, fuhrer, their internal systems are designed to work and react at a much greater speed than your standard marionette, to say nothing of the quality of their construction. They're easily several generations above the military sabers." He turned and looked at Faust, though it was somewhat hard to tell with his unusual glasses. "My theory is that they were designed to withstand the rigors, physically and emotionally, that the maiden circuit could put them through. Your average marionette wouldn't be able to handle it."

"I see," Faust said, putting a hand to his chin. "If you were able to recreate one of the maiden circuits, and put it in a normal marionette, what would happen?"

Hess frowned, and the end of his long nose tilted slightly downward. "My guess is that it would cause the marionette to break down in a matter of weeks, perhaps days." He turned back to the monitors, and tapped on one of them. A new screen popped up, showing silhouettes of the three sleeping marionettes. He tapped the images over where their hearts would be, and the images zoomed in until three circle devices were showing.

"Those," Hess said, "are the maiden circuits."

Faust couldn't help staring. They looked so simple, yet there was something oddly complex about them, as though they weren't completely of this world. In the diagram, he could see the differences between the three circuits, as though each of their personalities and quirks were on display. "What does all that mean?" he asked, partly out of plain wonder.

"I'm still working on that," Hess said, seeming not to notice Faust's staring. "We don't have a great deal left of the creator's notes, so most of what I do know has come from what little I've been able to piece together. There are other countries that might have more information, but they might not be willing to give it to us."

"Which countries?" Faust asked without taking his eyes off the screen.

"Primarily Japoness," Hess said.

Faust grumbled under his breath. It would have to be Japoness. Even after six months, he still hadn't been able to establish diplomatic relations with them, and they were the only country that refused to trade with Gartlant. He knew he would have to deal with them eventually, but with something like this. . . . Perhaps, he thought, he could use it as a bargaining chip. But that would come later.

"What can we do with what we have now, if Japoness doesn't want to help us?" he asked. "Is there any way you can alter the design, make it so it would work in a regular marionette?"

Hess said nothing, but leaned closer to the monitors, and tapped on various things until another marionette diagnostic was on the screen next to Faust's three. He tapped the center of the single marionette diagram, and an emblem of a maiden circuit appeared in its chest. The circuit started flashing, and streams of color spread through the marionette's body. A number appeared next to the diagram, a percentage slowly rising.

"This," Hess said, "shows the emotional factors that come with having a maiden circuit." The streams of color slowly started to turn yellow, then orange, then red as the percentage number continued to rise. As the number reached sixty percent, the phrase 'system failure' popped up over the marionette diagram. "As you can see, as the maiden circuit grows, the emotional stress creates a physical stress--"

"Grows?" Faust interrupted, grabbing Hess's shoulder and forcing him to turn around. "What do you mean, grows? How does it grow?"

If Hess was at all surprised, he didn't show it. "I only know that it does, fuhrer. What causes it to grow, I still haven't figured out."

Faust let go of Hess and sighed. Damn. That was the one last mystery that the old man had left him, and he still wasn't any closer to figuring it out than he had been six months ago. Hess only knowing half of it, the half that didn't help, wasn't any better. "Go on," he said grudgingly.

Hess continued as though nothing had happened. "It creates a physical stress, one which will cause a regular marionette's body to break down in a matter of weeks."

"Right, you said that," Faust said, nodding. "What about making a simpler version of the circuit?"

"Making it simple could be complicated, fuhrer." Hess turned back to the screen that showed the three marionettes together. "As you can see, there are differences between the circuits themselves, and they're all at different places in their growth. I could put something together, possibly, but it would take time, and I would have to study them intensely." He glanced over his shoulder at Faust, and the blue light from the marionettes' pods shined on his glasses. "I would ask your permission for that."

Faust frowned, momentarily wished for a glass of wine, then shook his head to clear away the thought. Doing something like Hess was suggesting. . . . There was potential there, but he had to admit that he didn't like the idea of leaving the marionettes down here with Hess for any long period of time, especially when he couldn't be around. He did have a country to run, he couldn't afford to spend all his time in a basement lab. However, it could do a lot of good.

"I'll ask them," Faust said after a moment, "and see what they think. They're the ones with the circuits."

Hess gave him a strange look for just an instant, then said, "As you say, fuhrer."

* * *

"So that's the plan," Faust said, then turned and looked at the three marionettes. "But you're the ones who have the maiden circuits, so I wanted to talk it over with you three first."

The four of them had retired to Faust's room, the only place in the palace that he was sure didn't have any cameras in it. Something like this had to be private; they had to make their own decision. He wasn't sure how much privacy mattered to them - they'd shown themselves to be willing to say just about anything at any time, unless he was taking a meeting. Considering their comments sometimes, he was glad that they knew something of tact.

"You'd let us be alone with Hess for so long?" Luchs asked, putting a hand to her mouth and looking somehow scandalized. "Faust-sama. . . ."

"That's not what I mean," Faust said, suddenly getting a bad feeling about the entire situation.

"You can't get rid of us that easily," Panther said, and latched onto his arm.

"I wasn't trying to," Faust said, starting to grin. "But you heard what Hauser was saying about marionettes at the meeting today." He opened his arms, inviting Luchs and Tiger closer. Maybe this would be easier to explain with them close, he thought; things always seemed to work better, he always seemed to feel better, when they were near. They were never this affectionate when he was around other people. While he was a little grateful for that, as having them clinging to him all the time would cause questions at the very least, there were times when he wished that they didn't always act like . . . like marionettes when they were in public. Of course, he could just tell them to change that and they would, but that didn't feel right. They weren't dolls, he would let them make their own decisions. "It's like this," he said quietly. "I guess I want others to have . . . something like this."

"Like what, Faust-sama?" Tiger asked, looking up at him.

Faust looked down at her, then at Luchs, then at Panther. He slowly started to smile. "Happy," he said. "I want others to have someone to hold, and to be happy.

"Think about it. There's nobody in Gartlant but men, and I think a lot of them would like to have a woman who would smile at them, and be kind to them. And I think you three can help make that happen." He found that he liked the idea a great deal. Marionettes with emotions, even simple ones, could change the lives of the men of Gartlant, maybe even all the men of Terra II. "Will you do it?"

"Anything for you, Faust-sama," Tiger said. "You know that." Luchs and Panther nodded in unison.

Faust grinned. "The men of Gartlant will thank you," he said with a laugh. "But there's more to it than that. I want to know," he said, looking down at each of them in turn, "if you're going to be all right with this. You know how the maiden circuits work. I'd guess that whatever Hess comes up with is going to be drawn from your emotions. Are you all right with having that . . . copied?"

Tiger pulled back, and started to frown. "He'd just be copying emotions, right? Not memories?"

"It wouldn't work well if it was like that," Luchs said, though she didn't move away. "Something like that would be too close to what you had to deal with, Faust-sama. I'm sure you don't want dozens of marionettes all calling you their master."

Faust chuckled at that. It was an amusing image, but Luchs was right. He didn't even really want them to call him 'master,' but that wasn't something they'd been willing to change. "No, that wouldn't work," he said. He looked down at Panther, who'd been uncharacteristically quiet. "Panther, what do you think?"

Panther glowered, then let go of Faust's arm and stepped back to give him a hard look. "He better not start screwing around with us," she grumbled, "or I'll stuff him through the air ducts until his head pops out a smokestack."

They all laughed at that, which only made Panther glower even darker until she finally joined in. Faust shook his head, then pushed Luchs back a little and looked at all three of them again.

"I was thinking about that too." He gave them a serious look. "I'm not sure what Hess is going to be doing for you three, but I want you--" He pointed at Luchs. "-to find some way to back up the data on your maiden circuits before he does his thing. I want you to check and make sure that nothing has changed, that he's not messing with you in ways that I don't know about."

"Yes, Faust-sama," Luchs said. "I would have done that anyway."

"You're right on that one," Panther said, sneering. "Hess creeps me out sometimes."

Faust nodded. "I'm used to him by now, but I know what you mean. Anyway, figure that out, and soon, we can get started on this."

* * *

He dreamed of war again, for the first time in months.

Faust looked out over an army that numbered in the thousands, combat marionettes and foot soldiers and tanks and bizarre vehicles stretching out across the landscape, turning everything black and red under Gartlant flags. He stood on a balcony of the palace, and felt himself smiling. He knew it had to be a dream, but could do nothing but watch as he raised his hand, giving the order for the army to move forward.

As he watched, the army started to float upward. The men and marionettes were first, rising into the sky toward the stars, and the tanks followed. Faust watched as they rose.

"This is the reason," Faust heard from beside him. He looked over and saw himself, standing there dressed as the old man always had. "This is why Gartlant must rule, don't you know that?"

The other Faust turned and looked at him, frowning, glaring. His hair slowly started to turn grey, and his face became wrinkled, as the old man's had been. "You wouldn't know that, would you? You've given up, haven't you?"

Before Faust could say anything, the older him turned to the army and called out for them to fire. A burst of light flared around the floating army, and a beam shot forth into space. Far, far above them, there was an explosion, and something started to fall from the sky.

"You've forgotten," the elder Faust said, "and so you've denied Gartlant its proper glory. Someone else will get there first, and it'll be your fault."

The flaming wreckage of a spaceship became visible above, falling toward Terra II in a smoking heap. Just before it hit, Faust caught a glimpse of the woman whom he'd dreamed of.

Faust woke with a gasp, and clutched at his chest as he sat up. He was sweating, breathing hard, and his hair was matted to his forehead. "What. . . ." he muttered, then shook his head. The dreams of the woman in the ship were bad enough, but this was worse. At least they made some strange kind of sense.

"Faust-sama?"

Faust looked up to see Luchs silhouetted in the doorway, the only light in his darkened bedroom. He sighed. Seeing any of them after a dream like that was a relief.

"Are you all right, Faust-sama?" she asked, walking into the room.

Faust nodded, then coughed as he tried to get his heart to stop beating so fast. "I'm fine, Luchs," he said. "Just another bad dream."

"You seem to have those a lot, Faust-sama," she said, coming to stand next to his bed. "I've been worried about that, so have Tiger and Panther. We had an idea about how to help."

"Really?" Faust said, giving her a look in the dim light. He wished he could see her face, though he had a feeling that she was smiling. "What's that?" He had an idea, knowing how she and the others were sometimes, but. . . .

"Very simple, Faust-sama," Luchs said. "Scoot over."

Faust swallowed hard. For perhaps the first time in his life, he felt awkward. "I'll be fine," he said.

"You have a country to run, Faust-sama," Luchs said, not moving at all. "You need your rest, don't you?"

He found that he really didn't have an argument for that.

She crawled into bed with him, and curled up against him as he lay down, resting her head on his chest. Like Tiger, she was warm . . . if he hadn't known, he wouldn't have guessed that she was a machine.

Was she really? he thought. She and the others had maiden circuits, which could be seen as hearts, but did that make them alive? If what he wanted Hess to do worked, would he be creating living robots, or just making them more like people?

Faust sighed, and lay his head back on his pillow. That was a question for another time. He had enough to worry about. But as always, he had the marionettes. They were human enough, and that might be all that mattered.

He fell into a peaceful sleep, a small smile on his face.


	6. Part 5: Man Made Miracle

Part 5: Man-Made Miracle

Faust sat in a comfortable chair in one of the few rooms in the palace that wasn't done in the color scheme 'black on black with a side of black.' He'd chosen the comfortable, wood-paneled room specifically because it didn't look like something people from other countries would expect to see when they were dealing with Gartlant. With the call that he was expecting, with this electronic meeting, he knew how vital it was to show that he was not the Faust that the world was used to, and that Gartlant had indeed changed for the better.

This would be the first real contact with Japoness since Faust IX had died, and with Shogun Ieyasu himself making contact, Faust knew how important it was.

He glanced over to the purple-haired marionette standing beside him, clad in a simple formal dress, standing with her head bowed, her power turned off. Faust frowned. He would have liked to have this meeting with Tiger, Luchs, and Panther at his side - he was always more comfortable with them around - but Hess was working with them. The success of the Maiden Chip Project was greater than Faust could have hoped for so far, so he did his best not to begrudge Hess the time he needed.

All the same, Faust thought, Hess's timing left a lot to be desired.

The blank screen in front of Faust flickered and lit up in a dim shade of blue. Faust rose to his feet and smoothed out his jacket, ensuring he looked as presentable as possible. He had a feeling that some of the other leaders of Terra II still thought of him as a kid, as someone just learning the ropes and making mistakes. He would show them, he thought with a proud smile. He would show them that he knew what he was doing. Gartlant was going to achieve the greatness it deserved, and the Maiden Chip Project was just the beginning.

A countdown began in the upper left corner of the screen, and when it reached zero, the connection was complete. Faust stood proudly, then bowed to Japoness Shogun Ieyasu Tokugawa.

The other man looked much as Faust sort-of remembered him, stoutly built with a thick mustache and hair bound up in the traditional Japoness style. He was starting to go bald, and had a very serious look on his face - he didn't seem at all happy to see Faust. Ieyasu was sitting down in what looked to be some kind of formal room, and was clad in a dark blue robe.

"Fuhrer Faust," Ieyasu said formally.

"Shogun Tokugawa," Faust said, trying to sound both respectful and a little more casual. "Thank you for agreeing to this meeting, I've been hoping to establish relations with Japoness for a while."

"I know," Ieyasu said with a nod. "I'm sure that, in light of your predecessor's actions, you understand our reluctance to open our borders to anyone from Gartlant."

"I do understand," Faust said, grumbling on the inside. How long, he thought, would he have the ghost of the old man hanging over his shoulder? "But those days are past, long past, and I'm hoping that we can get something started that can benefit both Gartlant and Japoness."

"So you say," Ieyasu said. His expression hadn't changed. "I've seen this kind of thing from you before, Faust. Terra II's history clearly shows that your good intentions only benefit you in the end, they always have. I'm not sure what you're trying, but Japoness will not be fooled again."

Faust sighed. "Do you mind if I sit?" he asked, then took the surprised blink from Ieyasu as an answer. "I was hoping that you'd be able to see that I'm telling the truth, Shogun," he said. "We've ended all plans for war, I've disbanded most of the army, and there hasn't been a single tank produced in six months." He couldn't help smiling at that. "If you want, I'll bring in some of my advisors. I have people from Romana and New Texas on my council, and trade agreements with all countries except yours." He leaned forward in his chair, looking Ieyasu in the eye. "Things have changed, Shogun. I'd hoped that you'd have seen that by now."

"I'm sure you've heard the saying 'the leopard does not change its spots,' Faust," Ieyasu said. He still looked very serious, and Faust couldn't help wondering if the Shogun's face would crack if he tried to smile. "I may not have the memories of my ancestors as you do, but I know my history."

"As do I," Faust said. He sat back in the chair, and started counting off on his fingers. "Faust the Third, the Fifth, and the Eighth all brought war to Terra II. None of them ended up with much for it, because there's enough space between all the countries that's empty for a reason and wasn't worth expanding into." He shrugged. "But I'm sure you knew that."

"I do," Ieyasu said, hesitantly. "I'd ask what your point is in bringing up all this, Faust."

"My point is that I've learned from the past," Faust said, trying not to sound impatient. He knew that Japoness diplomacy involved a lot of talking before one actually got to the point, and a great deal of it was insufferably polite. He was momentarily glad that Panther wasn't here, as she likely would have said something uncouth by now. He chuckled at the thought.

"I admit," Ieyasu said after a long pause, "I'm surprised to hear that from you. I've seen recorded conversations and speeches from your predecessors, and they were of a very different tone."

"I can imagine," Faust said with a small smile. "Let me guess. I'm sure they went on and on about Gartlant's superiority, saying that Terra II should have only one leader and that Faust was the one best fit for the job. . . ." He trailed off, well-aware of how bored and annoyed he sounded. "I'm sure you've heard that all before."

Ieyasu nodded slowly. "That is what I've heard," he said, then shifted a bit. "I must admit, Faust, you don't sound like your predecessors."

"Trust me, Shogun Tokugawa," Faust said with half a smile, "I'm not at all like them." He paused, then gave Ieyasu what he hoped was an honest, open look. "I grew up reading almost nothing but histories and war theory. Most of it was from Gartlant, of course, but some of the books were from other nations. Never once, in all that I read, did I see anything about what good Gartlant had done in any book that was from another country." He leaned forward and folded his hands in front of himself. "It made me think, Ieyasu, if I may call you that. I knew that I'd have the entire country to run once Faust the Ninth died. I wanted Gartlant to live up to its claims of greatness, to be worthy of them. And I wanted to do it in a way that would make other countries recognize it."

Ieyasu shook his head. "You should listen to your own words. What you're saying, that could be just another justification for war. You're not making much of a case for yourself."

Faust frowned. If that was how it was going to be, he thought, then there was nothing else he could do. He'd hoped to start an agreement of some kind before bringing out the big guns, as it were, but now. . . . He might have no other choice.

"If that's the case, Ieyasu," Faust said, "then I'll just have to prove it to you. What do you know about the maiden circuit?"

The surprise on Ieyasu's face was clear. He started to say something, then stopped, frowned, and said, "Why do you ask? It's been decades since anyone did work with that. The last records I saw of it were from New Texas, and they abandoned their work last century."

"Really?" Faust asked, not bothering to hide his interest. "I wish I'd known, I could have asked Murphy about that." He shrugged, then stood and stepped over to the marionette next to his chair. "There's something I want you to see, Ieyasu. I'd like to think it will prove my intentions."

Faust pushed aside the marionette's purple hair and opened the panel at the back of her neck, then switched her on. Her eyes lit up for a moment, then started to focus. Faust returned to his chair as she booted up.

"Good morning," the marionette said cheerfully, and smiled.

Faust watched Ieyasu's face carefully. The other man was trying to hide his surprise, he could tell, but that couldn't last long. It was time to play his trump card.

"Nadine," Faust said, "this is Shogun Ieyasu Tokugawa of Japoness. Please, greet him."

"Good morning, Shogun Tokugawa," Nadine said, then bowed at the screen. When she stood again, she was still smiling. "How are you?"

Ieyasu stared at the marionette, and said nothing.

"Nadine's only a first-generation model," Faust said, feeling rather proud of himself, "but she's the result of nearly a month of work by our men here. Her emotions are fairly limited, mostly to being happy and smiling, but considering most marionettes can't even do that, I think it's very promising." He looked to Ieyasu, who hadn't taken his eyes off of Nadine, and started to grin.

"You see, Ieyasu," Faust continued, "I know what it's like to have marionettes who can smile, who can laugh, who can have a conversation. Nothing else can match that. I'd like for all the men of Terra II to have something similar." He paused, and Ieyasu finally looked back to him. "Do you really think I'd be taking up resources with this if I was trying to take over Terra II?"

"Faust, you're a fool," Ieyasu said quietly.

Faust's lip started to curl, and he had to force himself to hold his tongue.

"The maiden circuit isn't a toy," the Shogun said, "and it wasn't made to be copied and turned into something for your men to play with." He glared at Faust, who could see the anger in the other man's eyes. "You have no idea what you're doing."

"Oh, really?" Faust asked, trying to keep himself from sounding too harsh. Being questioned was one thing, he was fine with that, but being insulted for doing something great was quite another. "You might think differently, Ieyasu, if you had marionettes with maiden circuits of your own."

Ieyasu was silent for a long moment, and when he spoke again, he sounded almost sad. "It takes a special person," he said quietly, "to make the maiden circuits grow. It takes someone willing to look at marionettes differently." He gave Faust a hard look. "If I knew of anyone like that, I would see to it that they came to know the three Japoness marionettes with maiden circuits. But until that happens, they will remain asleep."

Faust's mouth dropped open. Japoness had marionettes with maiden circuits, like his own? And they didn't belong to anyone? A dozen questions came to mind at once, but he didn't get a chance to ask any of them.

"You're risking everything the circuits are intended for with your pet projects, Faust," Ieyasu said firmly. "If you continue with this, Japoness has no reason to pursue relations with Gartlant. Thank you, and goodbye."

The screen went dark, leaving Faust sitting there staring. How could this be, he thought. He had no idea what Ieyasu was thinking. The man seemed to know what it took to make the maiden circuits grow, and didn't think of himself as the one to do it, so why wasn't he searching for that person? Something about all of it didn't make sense.

"Is there a problem?" Nadine asked, still smiling.

"There's always a problem," Faust grumbled, then sighed. Of course, this wouldn't change anything for Gartlant's plans. Ieyasu was welcome to keep the new marionettes out of Japoness; it would be a loss to that country's men but there was nothing Faust could do about it. He asked Nadine to follow, and headed for Hess's lab.

* * *

"I swear, Faust-sama, if one of those things gives me that huge smile again I'm going to take her apart and turn her into a can opener."

Faust gave Panther a curious look, then grinned at her. "Why, Panther," he said, laughter in his voice, "I thought you'd like knowing you helped make it so they could smile."

Panther almost glared at him. Faust had a feeling that, had he been anyone else, she would have thrown him down the hallway. She huffed a bit, and looked away from him. "They're just weird," she said quietly.

Faust and the three marionettes were heading toward the palace's main entry hall, having just finished the final meeting about production of marionettes with the maiden chip. Hess and the other scientists had gotten enough out of the maiden circuits to produce a basic personality complete with a fairly wide range of emotions, so Faust had given the order to start putting the chips into marionettes. That had been two weeks ago, a full month after his conversation with Ieyasu.

Faust shook his head. There hadn't been any more communication with Japoness since that discussion, even when Gartlant's news went public with the specifications of the maiden chip and gave a date for their production. News had traveled fast across Terra II, and the pre-orders for 'chipped' marionettes - he would have to see about getting someone to come up with a different name, Faust thought, one less ridiculous - were more than he'd expected. Of course, there were none from Japoness.

"Faust-sama?"

Faust blinked, and only then realized that Tiger had asked him a question as they were walking. "Sorry, Tiger, I was . . . trying to think. What did you say?"

"She said you've been working too hard, and need a good meal and a bath," Luchs said with a snicker.

"I did not," Tiger said, sounding somewhat irate.

"Well, you do, Faust-sama," Luchs said. "And maybe afterward--"

"Tiger?" Faust asked, managing to slip his arm away before Luchs latched onto it. "You were saying?"

"Are you sure that you shouldn't be the one giving the speech?" she asked. "This was your idea, after all. You're the one who let us help Hess and the others make the chips."

He paused for a second, then chuckled loudly. Tiger gave him a curious look, as did Luchs. Panther just raised an eyebrow. "If that's the case, maybe you three should be speaking," Faust said. "You're the ones with the circuits, or did you forget?"

"I don't think we could forget," Tiger said quietly.

"Very true," Luchs said.

Panther just nodded, then threw Faust a grin. "Maybe we should give the speeches, Faust-sama. We could tell them, 'This is what Faust-sama does for you. Appreciate it, or what's left of the army will use you as target practice. Anyone who survives will be fed Luchs's cooking.'"

"Panther!" Luchs snapped as the other marionette laughed loudly. "You know that my cooking's fine, since Faust-sama brought in that chef from Romana!" She glared at Panther - or at least seemed to, Faust thought, he still hardly ever saw her eyes - and her face started turning red. "You said that it was good yourself!"

"Really?" Panther shrugged. "I must have been drinking."

"Enough, you two," Faust said, though he was trying to hide his smile. After spending a fair amount of time with the 'chipped' marionettes while his three were in Hess's lab, he'd come to appreciate just how human they were even more.

"Come on," he said, raising a hand to stop the argument he knew was coming. "Murphy's giving the address about the new marionettes, and he won't start without us."

Panther grumbled and Luchs smirked, but they fell into step beside him, and the four of them headed out the front doors of the palace and to the raised platform that was set up for public announcements. Faust had to admit, they'd done this quite a few times since he'd come into his rule, but there were some things that he never got tired of.

He loved to see the city, his city, looking bright and clean instead of wallowing under dark clouds and a grey sky. He loved to see his people looking as though they actually wanted to be where they were, rather than looking like they were stuck here and just waiting to die. He loved to see a crowd that was here because they wanted to be. And most of all, no matter how many times he heard it, he loved hearing them chant his name.

"Faust! Faust! Faust! Faust! Faust! Faust! Faust!"

The people who were chanting were the ones who mattered, Faust thought, the people who made Gartlant great. Where else on Terra II could someone find such hard workers, people who had become newly dedicated to their home country?

Faust raised his hand in salute to the people, and watched as a sea of hands rose to salute him back. He held it for a moment, then took the seat that had been prepared for him. Tiger, Luchs, and Panther stood beside him. They still refused to sit during meetings, saying that they could better keep an eye out for potential threats if they were standing. It was their choice, so Faust didn't protest.

Murphy, the young advisor from New Texas and the man who'd shared Faust's idea of using the maiden circuits to design new technology, was the one making the first speech today. He went into some detail about the capabilities of the maiden chip, and talked about the different basic personality sets that they had come up with - Faust still wasn't thrilled that two of them were 'Happy Maid' and 'Tender Caregiver,' but he supposed he'd have to take what he could get. It would take some time, he knew, before people started to see marionettes as something other than tools. But this would be the first step.

If he had learned nothing else during his time as the ruler of Gartlant, he knew that nothing happened all at once. Small steps, as frustrating as they were at times, might be the only way to make progress.

The crowd responded well to Murphy's speech, Faust noted - he knew how to talk to them, how to keep them entertained during what might otherwise be a boring lecture, and how to make sure they knew how this was going to make their lives better. And then, just when he thought that the other man was nearly done, Murphy did something completely unexpected.

"So, I'm sure that you're all tired of having to listen to me jabber on and on," Murphy said, and there was a general chuckle from the crowd. "How'd you like to see the girls?"

The crowd started to cheer, louder and longer than they'd chanted Faust's name. He blinked, then laughed to himself. He should have seen this coming, he really should have.

"Maybe we should have been the ones making the speeches, if they like the idea of smiling marionettes so much," Luchs said.

"Maybe," Faust said with a smile. "Maybe."

Murphy waved toward the palace doors, which swung open. Faust watched and couldn't help laughing as the rest of his advisors paraded down the palace steps and toward the platform, each with one of the new marionettes on their arm. Some of the marionettes shied back at seeing so many people, and a few of them started yelling and waving at the crowd.

By their actions, Faust recognized each of the basic types - women of simple but different personalities, put together from data from the maiden circuits and the oldest of the history texts. They were dressed in something almost but not exactly like the traditional outfits of the different countries of Terra II - the outfits had been adapted for women, and some looked a bit odd, but Faust supposed they would work. He glanced over to the crowd, and from what he could see of their faces, he knew his men had done a more than adequate job.

And it was all for the greater glory of Gartlant, he thought as his advisors posed with the marionettes and people snapped pictures, perhaps even for the greater glory of all of Terra II. . . . And he had to admit, it was also just plain fun to watch.

* * *

"Chip-Ms?"

"No."

"Chipettes?"

"No."

"Chippies?"

Faust glowered, and shook his head. "Definitely not." This, he thought, was getting monotonous.

Orders for the marionettes with maiden chips were still amazingly high two weeks after their introduction, and Gartlant's factories had been pushed to their limits trying to produce enough to keep up with the demand. With no small amount of pride, Faust and the marionettes had broken the first ground at the site of a new marionette factory earlier that day; he considered the fact that a new one was necessary a very positive sign, to say the least.

However, coming up with a good name for the new marionettes was proving to be quite a task. In an effort to be egalitarian, Faust had invited the men of Gartlant to come up with ideas, with the person who suggested the winning name getting a 'chipped' marionette of his own. After the first hour of listening to the suggested names, though, Faust was starting to question the wisdom of this.

"Chobits?"

Faust paused, and blinked a few times at Murphy, who was reading down the list. "What?"

Murphy shrugged. "Someone from Hess's lab suggested it, fuhrer." He glanced at the list again. "Calls himself Clamp."

Faust put a hand to his forehead and shook his head. This just wasn't working out. "That's enough for today," he said. "Maybe we can form a focus group to--"

"Fuhrer!" A monitor on the side wall blinked to life, showing one of the palace guards looking rather flustered.

"Faust-sama is not to be disturbed during meetings!" Tiger snapped at the guard. Faust wondered if she meant it or if it was a reflex, as she'd looked very bored throughout the entire listing of names, as had the others.

Faust held up his hand. "Let him speak."

"Fuhrer, there's a man with a sword out here. He says he wants to speak to you."

He turned, slowly, and frowned at the guard on the monitor. "A man with a sword," he said quietly. "And he wants to see me. Why is he in the palace in the first place, if he's armed?"

The three marionettes moved closer to Faust, gathering around the throne. He had to smile at that; while he doubted that one man with a sword would be any threat to him with Tiger, Luchs, and Panther around, there was something oddly comforting about having them protect him.

"He's made no threatening moves, Fuhrer," the guard said, "but he seems very mad about something. I think he's from Japoness, by the way he's dressed."

Faust paused. Someone from Japoness. . . . He didn't think that Ieyasu would send someone to assassinate him; that wasn't the Shogun's style and no assassin would show up at the front door. Perhaps it was someone seeking a 'chipped' marionette, as there still hadn't been any ordered from Japoness. Regardless of the reasons, this could be interesting, he thought.

"Give him two guards as an escort," Faust said to the surprised looks of the marionettes and his advisors, "and send him in."

"Are you sure about this, Faust-sama?" Luchs asked quietly as Faust leaned back in the throne. "If he was sent by Japoness--"

"Then I know you'll keep him from harming me," Faust said with a smile. "But trust me. I don't think he's going to be any threat."

"It's not nice to give us reason to worry about you, Faust-sama," Tiger said, sounding rather put out. Faust just grinned back at her.

The throne room doors swung open, and Faust took a look at the man who was already causing tension throughout the room. He was tall, taller than most men from Japoness that Faust had seen. His hair was black, and worn long, his eyes held half-closed, and he carried himself with an easy, assured kind of grace. His garb was simple and traditional, and he carried a katana at his side. A fairly pack was slung over his shoulder. If he was at all bothered by the guard escort, he did not show it; Faust wondered if he even realized they were there.

The man approached the throne, stood at a respectful distance, then bowed and said nothing.

"Good evening," Faust said after a long moment. The last thing they needed was a tense silence, he thought. "You've come a long way, I can see. What's your name?"

"My name is Soemon Obiichi, fuhrer Faust," he said. His voice was tight and restrained; Faust thought it seemed like he was holding back some great grief. "I have come for the miracle you call the maiden chip."


	7. Part 6: Broken

Part 6: Broken

For the first time in as long as he could remember, Faust found himself insisting that the marionettes listen to him and do as he told them.

"I know he has a sword," Faust said for what felt like the tenth time. "But you've seen him." He glanced over his shoulder, through the doorway to the formal meeting room. Obiichi was sitting there, kneeling on the floor in the Japoness fashion. "He walked here from Japoness, and I want to give him the courtesies he's used to." He swept a lock of blonde hair over his shoulder, then gave the marionettes a hard look. "That means you three will be sitting down while we talk." There was an awkward pause as he stared them down, each in turn.

Tiger was the first to lower her gaze. "If you say so, Faust-sama," she said. Faust wasn't surprised at that; she always had the easiest time obeying his orders, though he never liked having to give them. Luchs and Panther, though, looked ready to challenge him.

"You always say we can do what we want, Faust-sama," Panther said, curling her upper lip. "Why're you making us do this?"

"Call it diplomacy," Faust said dryly. "I know he's not an ambassador, but he might as well be for all the good talking to Ieyasu did. Besides, he looks like he has a lot on his mind, and I want to know what it is."

"Ah, so it's a ruse," Luchs said, and she gave Faust a familiar smile. She was thinking of something, he knew it, but he also knew better than to ask or try to stop her. "Very well, I'll sit."

Faust looked to Panther, who huffed. "Please?" he asked calmly.

"Fine," Panther muttered. "But if his hand gets anywhere near that sword, he's going through the wall."

Faust half-grinned at her. He regretted having to give orders that they didn't want to follow, but as for how they agreed, he didn't think it could be any other way.

He turned and strode into the meeting room, then lowered himself to the floor and sat a few feet across from Obiichi. The marionettes sat as well, Tiger and Luchs at Faust's right and left, Panther at Luchs's left, within easy range of the other man. Faust watched Obiichi's face, but his expression didn't change at all.

"I apologize for the wait," Faust said carefully. He was guessing it'd be better to start things off in the same way he'd talked to the Shogun, as Obiichi seemed even more formal. Faust hoped he'd relax with time. "Please, tell me why you've come so far."

"As I said," Obiichi began, "I wish to acquire a maiden chip, and I would ask for the services of your technicians as well." His voice was still tight and constrained, Faust noted; he seemed to be holding back a great deal.

"You've come a long way for just that," Faust said, starting to smile. Maybe, he thought, he should have had some saké brought in; something familiar might help Obiichi loosen his tongue. "I know that there haven't been any orders for the chipped marionettes from Japoness, but that shouldn't mean you couldn't get one."

"Forgive me, fuhrer, but that would have been less than adequate," Obiichi said. "My circumstances are unusual." His eyes left Faust's face, just for an instant, to glance toward the corner of the room, at the bag that he had carried with him. "Even if I was able to acquire the chip, I would still need a technician."

Faust sighed, and did his best to ignore the frown that Obiichi directed at him. "Obiichi. I can tell there's a lot you're not telling me." He leaned a little closer, and said, "With what you're asking for, I think you at least owe me the whole story."

Obiichi bowed his head. When he spoke again, his voice was quiet, as though coming from far away. "It was many years ago, but I remember it well. I was in Japoness's capital city, and I saw the woman I love through the window of a pawn shop.

"The man who owned the place told me that I would have difficulties with her, as she was an older model, but his words meant nothing to me. Surely, she and I were fated to meet that day. When I brought her home, I turned her on; she told me her name, and I told her mine. That was the beginning for Koyuki and I."

Obiichi paused, and looked Faust in the eye before continuing. "Of all men, I would expect you to understand. Marionettes are not simply tools, they are as alive as you or I. Most men in Japoness, if not all, do not see this way. Koyuki and I tried to make our own simple home, but we were ostracized wherever we went, often violently.

"I would expect you to be well-informed of happenings across Terra II, so you must know that the news of Gartlant's Maiden Chips was not well-received in Japoness. Popular opinion is still greatly against this country, and you would find few who would speak in favor of marionettes with emotions. When the news reached us, Koyuki and I found ourselves at the heart of a brutal protest. There were some who believed that I had acquired a Maiden Chip for her."

Faust had started frowning a while ago, but he bowed his head at hearing that. He hadn't thought that he would be doing any harm with the Maiden Chip Project, especially to someone who felt the same way about marionettes that he did. "I am sorry," he said quietly, as he had already guessed how this story would end.

Obiichi continued, giving no sign that he had heard Faust. "As time went by, the crowds grew more violent. A week ago, we attempted to escape during the night. There were those fanatical enough to keep watch, and they gave chase.

"During our flight, Koyuki and I were set upon by those who see differently than I do, and she was killed."

Faust drew in his breath sharply, and narrowed his eyes. This was just the kind of thing he'd been hoping to avoid. The entire purpose behind having the marionettes become more visible to the public was to make them seem more human, and to hear that things like this were happening. . . . Even if it wasn't in Gartlant, it was a tragedy. If it had happened here, he thought, he would have had the men arrested and thrown in jail, with the same punishment for killing another man.

"I have carried her here with me," Obiichi said, his voice quiet again. "If I must, I will beg for your help." He leaned forward, and bowed until his forehead touched the floor. Somehow, Faust thought, he did it without losing his quiet dignity. "Fuhrer Faust of Gartlant, you have given Terra II a miracle with the creation of the Maiden Chip. Please, help me to restore Koyuki to life, and grant her the chip. Even if only for a moment, I want to see her smile."

"Granted," Faust said without hesitation. He smiled as Obiichi raised his head, a surprised expression on his face. "Soemon Obiichi," he said, letting himself drop into the tone of voice that he used for making speeches, "you are the kind of man I had in mind when I first thought of making the Maiden Chip. Come." He stood, then held out his hand and helped Obiichi to his feet. "Let's go down to Hess's lab, and we'll see what he can do for you."

"Forgive me, fuhrer, but I am surprised at your generosity," Obiichi said. His expression had returned to calm and stoic, but Faust could hear that the other man was fighting off disbelief. "You would simply give me a Maiden Chip?"

"You shouldn't doubt Faust-sama," Tiger said, a hint of laughter in her voice. "He's never been shy about favoring those who agree with him."

"You make it sound like I'm a pushover," Faust said, giving Tiger an irate look. She smiled back at him, completely unashamed.

"Not at all, Faust-sama," Luchs said from his left. "But anyone could see that you'd give him what he wanted." She tilted her head slightly as he looked at her, and he caught a rare glimpse of her eyes. There was caring there, he thought, and not only for him. "He's a little like you."

"Your marionettes speak well of you, and prove your own words," Obiichi said. "If you are willing to help me, then please. . . ." He bowed his head again. "I would like to see Koyuki again as soon as possible."

Faust nodded. "Then let's go talk to Hess."

* * *

Faust stepped out of the elevator and into the dim expanse of Hess's lab. The three marionettes fell into step at his side, and Obiichi stood a step behind them, his expression unreadable. He again carried the bag he'd brought with him from Japoness. Now that he knew what was in it, Faust found himself reluctant to actually see inside. If the people who'd attacked Obiichi had done enough damage to Koyuki for her to fit into a bag only half the size of the man carrying it, her remains couldn't be in good shape.

Despite Faust's urgings to have some decent lighting installed in the lab, Hess still insisted on keeping the place halfway in the dark. Whether that was for atmosphere or just so it would allow Hess to make his standard appearances out of the shadow, Faust wasn't sure. At least he knew that there weren't any more machines of war built here.

"Hess!" Faust called.

"Yes, fuhrer?" Hess asked, stepping out of the darkness a few feet away.

Faust whipped around and glared at him. "First, stop doing that. Second, I have a job for you." He held a hand out, gesturing for Obiichi to step forward. "This is Soemon Obiichi, from Japoness. I want you to repair his marionette and give her a maiden chip."

"Very well," Hess said, then paused. He seemed to be looking around, but Faust couldn't see his eyes to be sure. "Obiichi, I'll need you to bring your marionette down here."

"She is here," Obiichi said tersely, and gestured to the bag he wore.

Hess paused. Faust gave him a curious look. That, he thought, was something new - he wasn't sure how old Hess was, but the man had worked for Faust IX, and possibly Faust VIII before that. Hess must have seen a great deal in his lifetime, so for something to give him pause, it must be worse than Faust had thought.

"I see," Hess said. "Follow me." He headed off toward the back of the lab, where Faust knew he kept the facilities for working with marionettes. Obiichi followed without a word.

Faust turned to the marionettes, about to ask if they were ready to leave, but paused when he saw that all three of them were watching Obiichi walk away. He frowned. There was something strangely upsetting about them looking at someone else, especially when they were with him. He cleared his throat, and said, "We should leave them. Obiichi probably has--"

"Faust-sama," Tiger said quietly, looking up at him. "I - I want to see what happened to his marionette."

Faust drew back, surprised at the look in her eyes. He hadn't seen her that sad since before Faust IX had died, since she'd had to worry about being punished for doing what she felt she had to do. "Tiger?"

"I'm not really sure," Tiger said quietly, "but something. . . ." She put a hand over where her heart would be. "Something doesn't feel right about leaving her without seeing what they did to her."

"But you'll see her once she's repaired," Faust said. "I'm sure Hess can fix her, he could probably do it in his sleep." He started to feel uncomfortable, though he wasn't sure why.

"I want to see her too, Faust-sama," Panther said, giving Faust a hard look. "We're supposed to be stopping things like this, right? That's why you made the chips."

"Part of it," Luchs added. "Not all of it, of course." She gave Faust another of her less-than-innocent smiles, but quickly grew serious. "I agree with Tiger and Panther, though, Faust-sama. I can't explain it, but . . . we should see her."

Faced with a united front, Faust sighed, then nodded. "All right," he said, "we'll see what happened to Koyuki."

He walked with them to the marionette facilities, and they moved ahead of him to gather around the pod where Hess and Obiichi stood. Faust looked over their shoulders, and grimaced when he saw what was left of Koyuki.

He could hardly tell that the pile of parts and casing had once been a marionette. There were pieces that might have been hands and feet, but the body was little more than broken machinery. There were parts that Obiichi had wrapped in a silken garment, legs and arms as far as Faust could tell, but it was difficult to be sure. The head was in two pieces, and the area around the right eye had been crushed in, making the marionette look as though she'd been badly beaten. The remaining eye was closed, and Faust was sure that Obiichi had done that himself.

Faust looked closer, and saw small drops of blood, both on the silk wrappings and on the marionette's remains. It seemed that Obiichi's attackers had not gotten away unscathed, and Faust didn't doubt that the man had fought all the harder once the one he loved had been struck down.

Around the pod, Faust's three marionettes stared down at the broken marionette. Tiger was holding her hands to her mouth, and looked as though she wanted to cry. She clutched Faust's arm, and turned away. Panther's lip was starting to curl, and Faust wondered if she was going to spit. Luchs seemed to be taking a closer look, as her eyes were glowing blue behind her bangs, but she was frowning.

"How long will it take to fix her?" Obiichi asked after a moment of silence.

Luchs's eyes went dark, and she glanced over at Faust, tilting her head so her eyes were visible. Faust looked at her and saw the answer to Obiichi's question. He remained silent. This, he thought, was going to be difficult.

"There might not be anything I can do," Hess said. He untied the silk garment, and the parts spilled into the pod, scattering themselves around it. "How long has it been since this happened?"

"A week," Obiichi said stiffly.

Hess peered closer at the marionette's head, then reached down and turned it so that the neck connections were pointing toward the ceiling. "The damage may be too great. Even if I can put her back together, she'll never be the same, and her memory will be gone. If you want, we could find her model, and have another of the same made--"

"Are you saying that she's dead?" Obiichi said, his fists clenched at his sides. He looked as though he was about to jump at Hess.

"He's telling you the truth," Luchs said calmly, "there's not enough of her left to put her back together." Obiichi turned to look at her. She paused. "I'm sorry."

She meant it, Faust thought, he could tell. He'd grown so used to she and the others showing emotion, but for someone like Obiichi, it must be staggering. He looked at Obiichi, and saw pain in the other man's eyes. After a moment, Obiichi bowed his head, then turned and knelt at the side of the pod.

"Koyuki," he whispered, "please forgive me. I failed you."

"It's not your fault someone was an ass," Panther said, still grimacing. She pointed at the blood drops on the broken marionette's limbs. "Besides, it looks like you gave what you got."

"I did all that I could, and it was not enough," Obiichi said without raising his head. "Fuhrer Faust, I thank you for your generosity, but I am not worthy of a marionette with a Maiden Chip." He stood, holding himself upright, then bowed to Faust and the marionettes in turn. "I have taken too much of your time, and so I must leave. Please, give me time to gather Koyuki, so I may give her a proper burial."

"Obiichi," Faust said, holding out his hand. The other man hesitated, and Faust thought quickly. He had an idea, one that just might work, but he had to find a way to keep Obiichi around for a day or two. "You've come a long way," he said. "You're welcome to stay here tonight, so you can rest. If you want to leave tomorrow, that's fine, but there's something I want to look into first."

Obiichi gave Faust a cautious look. "Again, thank you," he said, "but if you have something to tell me, I ask that you do so now."

"As soon as I can," Faust said with half a smile. "I just need to talk to somebody first."

Tiger raised her head, and asked, "Who, Faust-sama?"

"Nobody who'll be glad to hear from me," Faust said. The other half of his smile made its way onto his face. "Shogun Ieyasu."

* * *

On the evening of the next day, Faust sat down to a traditional Japoness-style dinner with Obiichi and explained the situation.

"Shogun Ieyasu refuses to speak with me," Faust said, trying to get comfortable while sitting on his knees. "His aide says that the shogun has nothing to say to me, and that any proposed treaties can go through the appropriate people." Faust rolled his eyes. "Only six leaders on this entire planet, and one won't talk to me."

Obiichi nodded, then picked up his chopsticks and his bowl of rice. "I see," he said. "You still have not told me how this concerns myself or Koyuki, fuhrer."

Faust nodded, and reached for his own chopsticks. "I know," he said. "That's why I had Tiger, Luchs, and Panther leave us alone for this meal." He paused, and watched Obiichi's expression carefully. "I don't know how well they'd take the news that there are others like them."

Obiichi brought a bite of rice to his mouth, and seemed to be considering carefully while he chewed. After swallowing, he asked, "I presume this is what you wished to ask the shogun about, and this is why you wanted me to stay?"

"Something like that," Faust said. He took his chopsticks between his fingers, and attempted to pick up some rice. Three failed tries later, he continued talking. "Shogun Ieyasu and I have only talked once, and it didn't end well. He said I was a fool for creating the Maiden Chips, that the Circuits they come from aren't toys." He shook his head. "For a leader of Japoness, he seems kind of short-sighted."

"Many people have trouble adjusting to different ways of seeing things," Obiichi said calmly. "But I must ask - what did you mean by 'circuits'?"

"Maiden Circuits," Faust said. "They're what make Tiger, Luchs, and Panther the way they are. I had Hess and some of the other scientists analyze the Maiden Circuits and find a way to replicate the emotions, so that normal marionettes could have something of the same thing. Before Ieyasu cut off our talk, he let it slip that Japoness also has three marionettes with Maiden Circuits." Faust reached for his rice again, paused, then set down the chopsticks and picked up a fork. "He said that if he knew anyone who was willing to look at marionettes differently, possibly as something more than tools, then he would have that person meet the Japoness marionettes."

Faust let that hang for a moment, giving Obiichi time to consider. He was thinking about it, Faust could tell that much - the other man kept his emotions in check most of the time, but Faust could see the struggle behind his half-closed eyes.

"You would bring me back to Japoness," Obiichi said plainly, "to meet these marionettes."

"That was the idea," Faust admitted.

Obiichi bowed his head. "The day after my Koyuki's burial, you would ask me to consider others."

Faust started to frown, and would have kicked himself if he'd been able to. How, he wondered, could he have thought otherwise? Would he so quickly have sought out other marionettes if something happened to his three? The very thought of losing them sent a chill through him, and he found himself surprised by his own reaction. He had become so used to having them around - he literally didn't know of life without Tiger - that he'd never thought about what would happen if they were somehow . . . killed. Yes, he thought, that was the right word. If they could not be repaired, as Koyuki couldn't, then they would truly be dead, not just broken.

Faust sighed. Perhaps, he thought, there were areas of diplomacy that he needed to spend more time learning, or perhaps he just needed to think of how the other person might feel in a situation like this. "Forgive me, Obiichi. It was the first thing I thought of, so I thought it would be best to tell you about it."

Obiichi was quiet for a long moment, and when he raised his head, his eyes were open more than usual. "Not all men," he said quietly, "would do what they think is best and then give an honest apology. You have done well by me, fuhrer Faust, so I will consider your offer. I would ask you for time - a week, perhaps."

"Done," Faust said with a nod. He managed a smile, glad that things had turned out at least a little better. "You'll be welcome here, as a guest, for as long as you want."


	8. Part 7: Random Acts Of Diplomacy

Chapter 7: Random Acts of Diplomacy

Faust floated in a sepia-tinted tube, pushing off the walls, propelling himself forward. Somehow, it didn't seem strange that he should be floating . . . he was in space, he realized, and that wasn't strange either.

What was strange was the conversation he could hear, somewhere ahead of him in the tube.

He recognized the woman's voice. She was Lorelei, one of the chief scientists on board and the woman responsible for the Mesopotamia's computer. She and Faust had spent quite some time talking before the launch, and he knew that she was everything he'd heard her to be, brilliant and beautiful. Just who she was talking to was still a mystery.

Faust continued to float. He turned a corner to see two others floating farther down the tube, looking out a window, out into space. Somehow, their words were muddled, and he wasn't sure what they were talking about. Both of them had their attention fixed on the window, but a moment later, they turned and started looking at each other. Faust could see something in the man's eyes, a kind of . . . affection? Attraction? Desire? Could he-

Somewhere inside, Faust started to feel hot, and he felt himself frowning. This wasn't the good kind of heat that he sometimes felt when around the marionettes, he could tell. It dimly reminded him of how he'd felt when he'd seen the marionettes watching Obiichi. There was something angry about it, something that made him hurry toward the two of them, wanting to know who the other man was and what he was doing with Lorelei.

The two of them turned at Faust's approach, and when they spoke, it was muddled, like they were talking while underwater. He watched as he talked to them, not understanding his own words either. Then, one word came out clearly, and he felt something spark inside himself.

"Ieyasu."

The other man was Ieyasu? How could that be? Ieyasu was an older man, not this long-haired kid floating before him. . . .

Faust turned against his will, and he looked out the window. Stars . . . there was almost nothing but stars, save for a cloudy blue-white sphere, a place that looked like Terra II but wasn't. That was Earth, Faust thought, that was the place they'd come from. . . .

Faust's reflection sneered at him, and said, "You're going to lose. This is what you've already lost, now turn and look at what you're going to lose again."

He turned, and saw Ieyasu holding Lorelei in his arms. She was looking at him the same way that Tiger, Luchs, and Panther looked at Faust, with that same kind of adoration in her eyes. Faust felt the heat starting to build in himself again, then glanced back to his reflection.

"You're going to lose her, you're going to lose everything," the reflection said with a sneer. As Faust watched, his face began to grow wrinkled, and his hair grew long and grey. "You don't remember, so it's all going to slip through your fingers. You're wasting your time. You will fail."

Faust tried to scream, but his voice came out garbled, and there was nothing he could do but watch the reflection as Lorelei and Ieyasu floated down the tube, hand in hand.

He came awake suddenly, crying out, trying to reach for something that was no longer there. He was breathing hard. Trying to calm down, he put a hand to his forehead, and muttered. Another dream, he thought, and stranger than the last one. But both times, he'd seen an older Faust, or maybe an older version of himself, and there was the warning that he was going to lose.

What was there to lose? He remembered the histories; the Mesopotamia had taken Lorelei hostage, and that was why his ancestor and the other five men had been forced to crash-land on Terra II. There was something about the Maiden Circuits, he remembered that much, something about them helping to return Lorelei to Terra II, but he still didn't know how that was supposed to happen. Was that what the dreams meant? And why did he keep dreaming about this? Was it leftover memories from the other Fausts, or something more?

"Faust-sama?"

Panther's sleepy voice came from the other side of the bed, and she raised her head to look at him. He had to laugh a little at the look on her face - she usually slept like the dead, and it wasn't often that something could wake her up. Also, just as Faust had thought when he first saw her, she snored. He'd gotten used to that; it had taken a while, but not nearly as long as it'd taken him to get used to the lingerie Luchs slept in. He still wondered where she got that.

"You all right?" she asked, blinking a few times in the dim light.

"Just another dream," Faust said wearily, then leaned back on his pillow. "It's been a while since I had one like that."

Panther sat up and leaned closer, and the one long lock of her hair brushed over Faust's forehead. "A massage would help you get back to sleep, Faust-sama. Do you want--"

The room's door opened, and Luchs stood there in silhouette. "Faust-sama? I heard you - Panther, he's trying to sleep!"

"Of course he is," Panther said, looking toward Luchs and moving over Faust possessively. "He had a bad dream, so I'm going to give him a massage to help him sleep again."

Faust tried to keep from muttering. This wasn't going to end well.

"You're just going to keep him up later with that," Luchs said, starting to walk to the bed. "Besides, my shift's up, so it's your turn to stand guard."

"That's not how it works," Panther said. "We each rotate, and the two left over trade off watching the door!" Faust could hear her starting to snarl. Maybe he should just get out of bed now, he thought.

"Yes, but you're not supposed to be rotating on Faust-sama when he's trying to sleep," Luchs said calmly, then gave one of her nowhere-near-innocent smiles. She kept walking toward the bed, then paused at the side and started to take off her coat.

"What do you think you're doing?" Panther hissed. She leaned over Faust, again, this time like she was trying to protect him. He had to admit, he was starting to wonder the same thing.

"Making sure Faust-sama gets his sleep," Luchs said. "Tiger's shift starts soon, she can watch the door." She looked down at Faust, and tilted her head so that her eyes became visible in the dim light. "Is this all right, Faust-sama?"

If he said no, Faust thought, he'd just be in for a world of regret. "You don't need to ask my permission," he said, trying to sound a little resigned. He and Panther scooted aside, and Luchs slid into the bed on his other side. It was strange, but he had to admit that he really didn't mind.

Maybe he'd been wrong about it not ending well. . . .

* * *

". . . Housing Projects 7A and 7B are moving along according to schedule," Murphy said, going down the long list of weekly reports, "but they're still doing stability checks on the areas for 7C. That's going to add another two weeks to the timeline, maybe a month depending on the results."

"I see," Faust said, leaning back in his throne. The various Housing Projects had been several months in planning; Faust was willing to do nearly anything to get his people out of the slums and into decent homes, but he wouldn't risk speeding things up if it just meant the new buildings were going to collapse. "That's fine, make sure I get the stability reports when they come in."

"Yes, fuhrer," Murphy said, then flipped a page on his report. "Construction on the new production facility for the G-Model marionettes is proceeding according to schedule, no problems there."

"Good," Faust said. He smiled, feeling rather proud. He could tell that, no matter what else came of his reign, the Maiden Chip Project was going to be what put him in the history books and brought Gartlant the glory it deserved. Orders for the new models were coming in faster than their factories could process, though there were still none from Japoness. Several days ago, Murphy had mentioned rumors of a black market for the G-Models in Japoness, but Faust had told him to stop, saying he didn't want to know. If he didn't know, then there couldn't be any pressure for him to do anything about it.

That, and a good name for marionettes with the Maiden Chip had finally come in earlier that week, one worth all the bizarre suggestions from the contest.

"And finally--" Murphy began, but he was interrupted as the doors of the throne room burst open.

The guards around the room snapped their guns out and pointed them at the door, but to Faust's sides, Tiger and Luchs didn't move. He gave them a curious look, then turned his attention to the room's door. He grinned.

"Stand down," Faust said, chuckling. "You have a good workout, Panther?"

The blonde marionette laughed loudly. She turned a handspring, then another, flipping into the room and down the red carpet that led toward Faust's throne. When she reached the staircase, she flipped up into the air, tumbled twice, and landed neatly in Faust's lap. Faust grimaced at the sudden weight, but tried hard not to show it.

"Of course, Faust-sama," Panther said, then leaned forward and put her arms around Faust's neck. "Obiichi's a great teacher, and--"

"Do you have to do that in the middle of the throne room?" Luchs said, yanking on Panther's arms. "Faust-sama is hearing the weekly reports!"

"He can be done," Panther said, grinning wickedly.

"He almost was, until you barged in," Tiger said with a small smile. Panther just glared at her.

Faust chuckled again, then did his best to look at Murphy without removing Panther from his lap. "What's the last thing on the list, Murphy?"

"Still no word from Japoness," Murphy said. He acted like nothing had happened, but Faust could see the small smile on his face, same with many of the guards and some of his other advisors. That, he thought, was the true beauty of the Maiden Chip - many of these men now had G-Model marionettes of their own, and could relate to sudden and awkward attention.

"I see," Faust said, then shrugged. "I'd hoped to hear from them before the week was over, but it looks like it might be time for more drastic measures."

"Fuhrer, if I may--" Hauser began, then caught himself. "What kind of 'drastic' measures are you thinking of?"

"Nothing yet," Faust said with half a smile. "But we'll see what happens. And if there's no new business, this week's meeting is adjourned."

As usual, there was no new business, so the advisors filed out of the room. As soon as they started leaving, Panther looked at Faust.

"Obiichi wants to talk to you, Faust-sama," she said.

"I thought he would," Faust said, then started to stand. Naturally, having Panther on his lap made this difficult. "Panther, would you mind getting up?"

"Yes," she said, then grinned at him. "Maybe you should start training with Obiichi, Faust-sama. It might make you stronger."

Before Faust could say anything, Luchs and Tiger pulled Panther off of his lap and started dragging her down the stairs. He called for them to stop, laughing and shaking his head. Some things never changed, he thought, not that he'd have it any other way. He met them at the bottom of the stairs for a four-way embrace, then walked with them to the rooms where Obiichi had taken up residence.

Obiichi's rooms were on the second-highest floor of the palace, as he'd requested a room with a balcony and those were rare. According to what Faust had heard from Panther and some others, Obiichi had been teaching classes in basic self-defense and unarmed combat, and quite a few people were showing up. Panther called herself his favorite student with no small amount of pride.

Faust knocked on the door, and Obiichi answered a moment later. He bowed deeply, then said, "Thank you for coming, fuhrer Faust. Please, come in."

Faust and the marionettes followed Obiichi through his sparsely furnished rooms and out to the balcony. Once they were there, Obiichi rested his arms on the balcony rail, and looked out across the city. The sun was starting to set, shining orange and red across the plasma clouds in the distance. Faust leaned against the wall and waited for the other man to speak.

"I'm old enough to remember the stories of your ancestor," Obiichi began. "When I was young, I read the histories and the modern studies, and wondered why anyone would want to live here."

Faust nodded, but said nothing. It was a sentiment he'd become familiar with over the past eight years.

"In Japoness, they act as though nothing has changed. News from or about Gartlant is rare. The Maiden Chip was the first news we'd heard from this country since your reign began. They say things about Gartlant in Japoness, calling it a dark place, a country where no one would want to live." He paused, and turned to face Faust. "In the week that I've been here, I have seen that almost nothing I have heard about Gartlant in Japoness is true."

Faust smiled. This, he thought, was a testament to what he had done. But he was not here to give a speech, so he simply said, "Thank you."

"I do have a question, Faust," Obiichi said. "The marionette who attends to my room, did you send her yourself?" His expression hardened. "Did you see to it that I saw what the Maiden Chip can do?"

Faust paused, and gave Obiichi an unsure look. "You have a marionette attendant?" he asked. "I didn't even know about that," he said, chuckling again. "Whoever it is that deals with guests in the palace must have assigned her."

Obiichi nodded, somewhat stiffly, and turned back to the sunset. "I have learned a great deal this week," he said, more quietly than before. "I have seen the difference that the Maiden Chip makes, and your own marionettes have shown me what this 'Maiden Circuit' is capable of. Panther in particular," he said, giving her a sideways glance. "It has also made me realize that I cannot live in the past."

Faust expected Obiichi to sigh, but the other man stood taller, and a light breeze blew his black hair back from his face. There was some sadness in his eyes, but he seemed strong, and somehow content.

"I will never forget Koyuki," Obiichi said. "But I cannot spend the rest of my life mourning her." He turned to look at Faust again. "I accept your offer, and I will accompany you to Japoness. If the shogun will have me, I will meet my country's marionettes. Anything more, I cannot promise."

Faust broke into a grin, unable to help himself. "I'll try to make contact again tonight," he said.

* * *

Once again, Faust stood in the room where he'd first spoken with Shogun Ieyasu, where he'd been making most of his attempts at communication with Japoness. Perhaps he should try somewhere else, he thought, he'd never had any luck here. However, it was one of the more regal rooms and didn't look like what people would expect from Gartlant, so it would do. For now.

This time, though, it was different. Yesterday, Faust had pulled his rank as ruler of Gartlant, and he now had an appointment to speak with Ieyasu's head aide, an older man known as Hikozaemon. Faust had also brought Tiger, Luchs, and Panther along with him. He wanted to show the other man what marionettes with emotions, marionettes who weren't just tools, could be like. He'd invited Obiichi to speak on his own behalf, but the humble man had declined, saying that matters of state weren't where he belonged.

"So," Panther asked, sounding like she was hoping for a fight, "what're you going to do if they say no, Faust-sama?"

"I have an idea about that," Faust said, glancing over his shoulder to her. "I don't think I'll have to use it, but if the advisor's anything like the shogun. . . ." He let that thought trail off, then looked back to the screen. If Hikozaemon felt the same way about Gartlant that Ieyasu did, then this was going to be pointless. He thought back to Obiichi's comments about how most people in Japoness saw Gartlant, and started to wonder.

The screen flickered, and Faust stood up straight. It was time to find out.

The man who appeared on the screen looked old enough to have served at least three shoguns. His jowls were sagging, most of his hair was gone and what was left was grey, and he was looking at Faust as though he wanted to put him over his knee and spank him. This, Faust thought, was going to be difficult.

"Good evening, Hikozaemon," Faust said with a bow. Just as he'd asked them, the three marionettes bowed behind him. He heard Panther snickering, and was glad that he'd instructed them.

"Good evening, fuhrer Faust," Hikozaemon said formally. He sounded as stiff as Ieyasu, maybe even more, Faust thought. "You've been bothering us a lot lately, and I want to know why."

Faust paused, raising an eyebrow at the old man. "I'd think I could try to contact Ieyasu without having everyone in the palace think I was plotting something," he said dryly.

"If you would," Hikozaemon said, "please, get on with it. The shogun will not listen to any demands, and neither will I."

"Good," Faust said. "I don't have any demands. Instead, I'd like you to meet someone." He glanced over his shoulder. "Tiger, Luchs, Panther, introduce yourselves."

Faust stepped back and watched Hikozaemon's face as the marionettes walked up to the screen and started talking to him. The old man was getting upset, he could tell, and Faust wasn't sure if there was any curiosity. At least the marionettes were being pleasant.

"Can you tell," Faust said after a moment, "what makes them different?"

"They're G-Models, of course," Hikozaemon said with a stern glare. "We've heard about what you've done over here. If you're trying to get me to set up a trade deal, we're not interested."

"Not quite," Faust said, stepping forward and draping his arms over the marionettes' shoulders. "You see, these three are the ones who made the G-Models possible. Tiger, Luchs, and Panther are the ones that the first Faust had made." He grinned at the look of dawning comprehension on the old man's face. "They have Maiden Circuits."

"Impossible," Hikozaemon said, his eyes wide. "You couldn't have--" He paused, as though catching himself, then cleared his throat. "What's your point, Faust?"

Faust's grin faded. The old man knew something, he thought, Hikozaemon knew something and had kept himself from saying it. He was just as bad as Ieyasu. "My point is that I know they're not the only ones of their kind," Faust said plainly. "The last - sorry, the only time I spoke to Shogun Ieyasu, he mentioned that Japoness also had developed the maiden circuit." He paused, trying to judge Hikozaemon's reaction, but the old man was just scowling. "He even said that Japoness had marionettes like these three, and that if he knew someone who could see them the right way, then he'd introduce them."

Hikozaemon spat, "The shogun would never say--"

"Don't call Faust-sama a liar," Panther snarled, her lip curling. "Maybe if you had your own marionette, you wouldn't be such a dried-up old--"

"Panther," Faust said in a low voice.

"Faust-sama is telling the truth," Luchs said calmly as Panther seethed. "I've seen the video, I can play it for you."

Hikozaemon muttered under his breath, but seemed to relent. "Then what's your point, Faust? Even you wouldn't ask us to send our marionettes to you."

Faust laughed aloud at that. Diplomacy be damned, he thought, the idea was just too funny not to laugh. Hikozaemon, of course, glared at him, but Faust just shook his head.

"Faust-sama doesn't need your marionettes," Tiger said, "but we know someone who wants to meet them."

"One of your own, in fact," Faust said at Hikozaemon's stunned silence. "A man named Soemon Obiichi, who came here in search of a Maiden Chip after his marionette was killed because he loved her." He paused, letting that sink in, hoping it wouldn't be lost on Hikozaemon.

The look on the old man's face made Faust reconsider ever hoping for anything ever again. "Leave our people alone, Faust," Hikozaemon said firmly, "and don't ask us about the marionettes again. Good night." A moment later, the screen went black.

The three marionettes looked back at him, and Tiger said, "That could have gone better, couldn't it, Faust-sama?"

"Much better," he muttered. "I'm surprised he didn't declare war."

"If he did, we'd win," Luchs said. "Japoness has never had a strong army, and our military sabers are several generations ahead of theirs."

Faust chuckled at that. "Good to know, but I don't think it'll happen in my time." He headed for the doorway, and the marionettes fell into step beside him as soon as they were in the hall. "I have to tell Obiichi about this, and then we'll see what we do next."

Obiichi took the news about how Faust expected him to, stoically and without showing much emotion. "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised," he said quietly. "Thank you, fuhrer Faust."

Faust shook his head. "It's not good enough," he said. "You're the kind of person they're looking for, and the only reason they won't talk to you is because you're here with me." He started to glower. "I'm tired of this; it's time to try something different."

"You've mentioned that a few times, Faust-sama," Tiger said, then looked up at him. "I wish you'd tell us what you're planning, so we can prepare."

"Just a little something I learned from the history books," Faust said. He started to smile. "The other Fausts had their own names for it, but my favorite was the one that the Seventh used."

"What was that, Faust-sama?" Tiger asked, looking curious.

"Brute-force diplomacy." He broke into a grin. "Luchs!"

The blue-haired marionette snapped to attention. A second later, she sniggered, and she and the others burst out laughing. "Yes, Faust-sama?" she asked, giggling.

"Call the docks and have my sub prepared," he said, still grinning. "We're going to Japoness."


	9. Part 8: In a Country Far, Far Away

Chapter 8: . . . In a Country Far, Far Away

It was a two-day journey by sea to Japoness.

Faust had never liked using the submarine for travel, and he had the vague sense that his predecessors felt the same. He'd only used it once before, and that was a short journey to a seaside town to oversee the ground-breaking on a new kind of power plant that Hess had developed. Everything on the submarine was too cramped, the ceilings were so low that he had to duck, and he couldn't help wonder what would happen if something went wrong. The soldiers assured him that it was safer than driving, as did Hess, but Faust still harbored doubts. That, and his own chambers onboard presented difficulties from the start.

"Faust-sama, the bed's too small."

Panther's protest was only the beginning. Shortly after they had come on board, Luchs had led Tiger and Panther from one end of the submarine to the other. They scoured it for anything that they could use to make the quarters that he shared with them more comfortable and more like home. They'd ended up stealing mattresses from most of the soldiers' bunks in an attempt to make a bed the same size as the one back at the palace. When Faust saw their creation, he'd put a hand to his forehead and asked them to return the mattresses, as the new pile took up his entire room.

About an hour after that, Faust was sitting on the improvised captain's throne in the command room. The throne wasn't very comfortable and didn't have the majesty of the one in the palace, but he'd learned that he just had to accept the conditions on the sub.

"Everything is clear, fuhrer Faust," one of the soldiers said, glancing over his shoulder. "All conditions green for a smooth trip to Japoness."

Faust nodded to him. "Good," he said. "When will we get there?"

"About noon day after tomorrow," the soldier said. "There's a reef that we have to avoid, but that won't be a problem."

Faust drummed his fingers on the throne's arm. Nearly two days of travel, with little to nothing to do. Confined to a small space. No orders to give. And nothing, aside from him, to entertain the marionettes.

He made a mental note to have Hess start work on the next generation of his plasma-diffusion system, if only to create some kind of flying machine so he could get to the other countries more quickly.

Faust rose to his feet. "Let me know if anything comes up. Barring that, make sure my car is prepared at least an hour before we land in Japoness."

"Umm, fuhrer?" one of the other soldiers said from behind Faust. When Faust looked around to face the other man, the soldier cringed. "There's a problem with that, fuhrer."

"Really," Faust said, starting to frown. "What's the problem?"

"This submarine wasn't designed to hold one of your limousines, fuhrer," the soldier said, studying his boots. "There's only one bay for vehicles, and that's reserved for one of the tanks, just in case." He paused, and glanced at Faust, then quickly continued. "There was no order for a tank, and there wasn't one for a car. The bay's empty, fuhrer."

Faust paused, then sighed. He should have expected something like this would happen. The few remaining parts of the army were out of practice, and it seemed that they still followed their orders to the letter - only to the letter. "So there's nothing here that I can use when I need to get to the Shogun's palace?"

"I'm afraid not, fuhrer," the soldier said, still looking down at his boots.

"Fine," Faust said, gritting his teeth, "we'll walk." He stormed out of the control room, leaving a very frightened soldier behind him. He found Obiichi waiting for him just outside.

The man from Japoness was leaning up against one of the walls, his sword at his side. He looked both relaxed and ready, as though he expected to have to leap into action at any moment. "When in Japoness, fuhrer Faust, there is no dishonor in walking."

Faust paused, and raised an eyebrow at the quiet man. "What do you mean?" he asked, his voice flat.

"Most men cannot afford a motor-palanquin," Obiichi said, not moving at all. His eyes were half-closed, as usual. "Some of the elderly travel by handcart, but most simply go about on foot. If you are looking to make an impression on my people, it might be better that you walk."

"I see," Faust said, nodding. "I hadn't thought about it, it's been a long time since I read anything about Japoness." He started to smile, and shook his head. It was definitely easier to just charge into something, and he'd admit he liked working that way. But there were times when it was better to learn a little more beforehand. "Is there anything else I should know?"

"It will seem strange for your marionettes to be walking at your side," Obiichi said. "To some, that will be a sign that your ways are as bad as they've heard."

Faust started to glower. "I'm not making them walk behind me," he said. "They can say all they want, but that's not changing."

Obiichi raised his head just a bit, and gave Faust a faint smile. "I'm glad to hear that, fuhrer." He bowed, then turned and walked down the hallway.

Faust stood there for a moment, wondering just what Obiichi meant. He knew that the other man saw marionettes the same way he did, that was the main reason behind this entire trip. Faust had to admit, it was kind of strange to have someone around who saw things the same way. His advisors and the others around the palace were still getting used to the G-Models, and even after a few weeks, there were some who still had trouble getting comfortable with the emotional marionettes.

It would take time, Faust knew; everything took time. He just hoped that something good could come out of this trip. Otherwise, he'd be spending two days cooped up in the submarine for no reason.

* * *

Shortly after the submarine surfaced, Faust climbed out and took his first look at Japoness.

The city looked much as he'd seen it in the tapes and histories that he remembered from growing up. Many of the buildings were done in the pagoda style, with one roof for every floor, while some were more modern. The river that the submarine emerged from had an old-style wooden bridge running over it. Something about the place seemed brighter, cleaner as compared to Gartlant. . . . He couldn't help but notice that the air seemed fresher, and he already smelled cooking from somewhere in the city.

So, he thought, this was the place that had been first on the old man's list of countries to invade. This was the place where they were still worried that he would try to take over. Faust had to admit, if he was going to strike at any country, Japoness would be a good place to start. There was an air of ease here, of good life and simple times.

He took a moment to steel himself. As pleasant as it might seem, this was also the place where people saw him as a tyrant. Faust knew he was safe with the marionettes at his side, but he also knew that he would have to keep his eyes open. The earlier Fausts had their ways to foil assassination attempts, though if he remembered right, there hadn't been one since Faust the Third. He doubted something like that would happen here. Still, it wouldn't hurt to be prepared.

"Tiger! Luchs! Panther!"

The three marionettes, standing at the base of the ladder that led up to the submarine's top hatch, looked up at him. He smiled down at them. As always, they were ready.

"Come on," he said, "it's time to go."

Faust climbed down the side of the submarine's small tower, and stood on the wet deck, still looking out at Japoness's capital city. As the marionettes came out to join him, a small crowd started to gather, both on the bridge and on the road next to the river. Faust wondered how many of them knew who he was, and what they thought if they did.

Tiger, Luchs, and Panther came to stand at his side. They had chosen to wear simpler outfits for this trip, as Faust himself was wearing a more modern suit of a New Texas design, one that would give him less of a militaristic image. The marionettes' outfits were still somewhat unusual, but they lacked the ties and large shoulders, and for that Faust was grateful. Tiger, of course, still wore her hat.

Obiichi was next to come out of the submarine, and he stood a respectful distance from Faust, also looking at the city. Faust wondered what was going through his mind, though he knew he couldn't ask. He wondered if he'd ever truly be able to understand.

"It's an interesting place, Faust-sama," Tiger said from beside Faust.

He glanced down at her, and nodded. "Not what I expected," he said, "but it seems all right so far."

"Those people are staring at us," Panther said, looking over at the bridge. "I know you said to be nice, Faust-sama, but can't I hit one?" Faust gave Panther a look, then smiled when he saw her grinning at him. "Kidding, Faust-sama."

"Better now than in the palace," Luchs said. Her eyes were glowing behind her bangs, and a second later, she looked up at Faust. "I've found a map for the city, and it's not too far to the palace. How do you think we should get there, Faust-sama?"

"Whatever way shows off Faust-sama the most," Panther said with a wide grin.

"I like that," Tiger said. "They're already staring at us, we should enjoy it."

Faust chuckled at that. "Luchs," he said, looking at the blue-haired marionette, "how long will it take us to walk to the palace?"

"About twenty minutes, Faust-sama," she said. "Twenty-one if someone tries something foolish."

"You think it'd take us an entire minute to defend Faust-sama?" Panther asked, glancing over at Luchs.

"I was being generous," Luchs said. She smiled up at Faust. "If you're ready, Faust-sama, they'll lower the ramp."

"Lower it," Faust said with a nod, then looked back to the people gathered on the shore. "Let's go meet the people of Japoness."

A ramp unfolded from the side of the submarine and extended until it reached the shore. Faust stepped onto it, then strode to the riverbank, watching the gathered people. They seemed more curious than anything, though he did see some angry faces. He kept watching them, and saw that after a moment, they started looking past him, to the marionettes. Some of the younger men were whispering, and Faust smiled to himself.

Once the marionettes and Obiichi had joined him on the shore, Faust stood tall, and spread his arms as though he was going to give a speech. "Greetings," he said, and grinned. "I'm here to see the shogun."

"Japoness will never give in to you!" an old man near the back of the crowd yelled.

"Good!" Faust called. There was a general murmuring from the crowd. Not bad, he thought. "I like this place already," he said quietly to the marionettes. "Luchs! Lead the way."

The crowd parted for the small party, and they headed down a street toward the center of the city. The place was full of small shops and restaurants, and there were men out and about everywhere, working or relaxing. The entire place had an air about it that reminded Faust of some of the factories he'd toured - people worked hard here, but they took pride in their work, and they knew how to enjoy themselves on their time off.

Faust glanced over at Obiichi, and wasn't surprised to see that the other man walked with his head down. He wondered if this was difficult for Obiichi, returning to the country he called home after being violently thrown out. While the marionettes could keep anyone from attacking Obiichi again, unless he was welcomed back by his own people, he wouldn't be able to call Japoness home again. Faust frowned, and looked back to the city. He wished he'd known the Maiden Chip would lead to problems like this.

Not that he would have done otherwise, Faust thought. The chip had done too much for Gartlant for him to even think about going back on his decision to have it made. He hadn't thought that there would be problems like Obiichi had gone through, but hopefully this trip would make up for that.

They continued through the city without incident, though they had drawn a huge crowd by the time they neared the palace. People were lined up on both sides of the streets, talking and looking. Faust heard the word 'marionettes' more than once, and wished that he could tell what they were saying. He wondered if they were surprised to see marionettes showing emotion, as Tiger, Luchs, and Panther had been smiling and waving to the crowds. Some of the children he saw were staring, their eyes wide. Faust grinned. Maybe, he thought, there was hope for this place.

The shogun's palace stood five stories tall, behind a high wall with wooden gates large enough to drive a tank through. Faust and the others approached the gates, and he frowned at seeing them still closed. By now, he'd have expected word of his arrival to have reached the shogun, and the fact that the gates were still closed didn't bode well.

Without a word from him, Panther leaped over to the gatehouse and leaned down to look into the window. "Open the gate!" she said loudly. "Fuhrer Faust of Gartlant is here to see the shogun!"

The man inside the gatehouse stuck his head out the window, glaring at Panther. "Look, you obnoxious marionette, I don't care--" He looked past her, and his mouth dropped open. He yanked his head back into the gatehouse, and a moment later, the gates started to swing open.

"You should let me do this more often, Faust-sama," Panther said as she returned to Faust's side.

"If Faust-sama let you do the talking all the time," Luchs said, "we'd be going to war."

Panther turned and grumbled at her. Faust looked down at Tiger, and they both smiled.

They entered the courtyard of Castle Japoness. A traditional Japoness-style garden grew on both sides of the stone path that led to the castle's front gate. Faust saw a koi pond off near the wall, and a statue of a woman pouring water from an urn stood at the center of the courtyard, the path bending around her.

As they passed the statue, all three marionettes stopped to look at it. Faust and Obiichi paused, and Faust gave them a curious look.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"There's something odd about this," Tiger said, and reached out like she was going to touch the statue. "It seems . . . I'm not sure."

"Familiar," Luchs said, and Panther nodded. "It's like I've seen it before." She shook her head, and turned back to Faust. "I know it doesn't make sense, Faust-sama, but that's what it feels like."

Faust looked over the statue. He didn't see anything strange about it, and didn't recognize the image from anything he'd read about Japoness culture. He looked over at Obiichi, who shook his head. "Strange," Faust said. "I'll ask the shogun about it, if he feels like talking."

The group followed the path toward the front door of the castle. The door stood open, and Hikozaemon was there, flanked by a group of twelve combat marionettes clad in pink kimonos. The old man was scowling like Faust had just kicked his dog.

Faust bowed his head to Hikozaemon as he approached. "I was starting to wonder if I was going to get an escort," Faust said, starting to smile. "So, is the shogun going to see me?"

"Faust, this is highly unorthodox," Hikozaemon said, sounding like his teeth were half-clenched.

"That's how I work," Faust said with a chuckle.

Hikozaemon's face started to turn red. "If you're here to pressure Japoness--"

"That's not why I'm here," Faust interrupted, holding up his hand, his smile gone. "Look. I know you remember when we talked, it was only two days ago. That's why I'm here." He motioned for Obiichi to step forward. "This is Soemon Obiichi. We're here to talk to the shogun about your marionettes."

Hikozaemon glared at them both, but eventually turned. "Follow me," he said over his shoulder, and walked into the castle.

Faust and the others followed Hikozaemon, looking around as they entered the palace. It was done in traditional Japoness style, and Faust found a kind of simple elegance in the design. Then again, he thought, almost anything would be better than the stark black walls of Gartlant's palace.

They took an elevator to the fifth floor, where the shogun's chamber was. Hikozaemon made them leave their shoes outside the room, saying that boots were not to be worn on tatami mats. He gave them all one final dirty look, then entered the shogun's meeting room before them and made the introduction. When their names were called, Faust walked alongside his marionettes and Obiichi into Ieyasu's chamber.

The shogun was sitting, and so Faust knelt, as was the standard for one coming to see Japoness's ruler. By the look on Ieyasu's face, Faust could tell that his action had surprised the other man.

"Fuhrer Faust," Ieyasu said after a moment. "This is an unexpected visit. I welcome you to Japoness."

"Thank you, Shogun Ieyasu," Faust said with a small smile. "I like what I've seen of your country so far, I wish I'd had reason to visit earlier."

Ieyasu raised a hand to Hikozaemon, keeping the old man from saying something. "Hikozaemon has told me why you're here. I admit, I didn't think you would go this far for one man, especially one from Japoness." He looked over to Obiichi. "Soemon Obiichi, I've been told what happened to your marionette. Is it true?"

"Every word, shogun," Obiichi said, his head bowed. "My Koyuki was killed because others believed her to have a Maiden Chip. I went to Gartlant to seek out one for her, so that she could be repaired and given a chance to smile."

"Ah." Ieyasu looked back to Faust, and asked, "Was she beyond repair?"

"Sadly, yes," Faust said with a nod. "Hess, my head technician, said that she'd been damaged for too long to put her back together, and that she'd lost all her memories." Faust watched Ieyasu's face, hoping for some sympathy. This was going well so far, he thought, Ieyasu was actually listening.

"And this brings you back here," Ieyasu said. He paused, and sighed, looking more upset than Faust would have guessed. He looked at each of the marionettes in turn. "What about you three, what do you think of all this?"

"I think I'd like to smack around the people who killed his marionette," Panther said quickly. "You should have seen her, you could hardly tell what she used to look like."

"Panther," Faust said quietly.

"She's right, shogun," Tiger said, her voice quiet. "We - we helped him bury her in one of the palace gardens. We didn't even have to dig a very big hole for her. I still . . . try not to think about it."

"There was no way she could have been repaired," Luchs said, though Faust could see that Ieyasu was surprised at what Tiger had said. He knew that Ieyasu wasn't used to being around marionettes with emotions, but Faust didn't think that was all of it. "It was strange, and sad, to see a marionette broken like that."

Ieyasu nodded, and held his head bowed. He was considering it, Faust thought. Now was the time.

"When we talked, shogun," Faust began, "you said that Japoness had marionettes like Tiger, Luchs, and Panther." He paused, watching the marionettes to see if they were surprised. They looked at him, but didn't say anything, so Faust continued. "I told Obiichi I would bring him here, and that I'd see what I could do to help him meet them. He's agreed to this."

Ieyasu raised his head. "You shouldn't make promises with others' property, Faust," he said, frowning.

"Forgive my interruption, shogun, but fuhrer Faust never made it a promise," Obiichi said, his head still bowed. "Faust said that he would do what he could, and that he would try to talk to you about it first. He continued to try, even when you wouldn't speak to him. I doubt that he would have made this sudden visit had there been any other way."

"You speak well of someone who--" Hikozaemon began, but Ieyasu held up his hand, and the old man fell silent. He was still glowering, though.

The shogun did not speak, and so the room was quiet. Faust watched Ieyasu's face carefully, but he seemed to be even better at hiding his thoughts than Obiichi. After a long moment, Ieyasu sighed, and looked at the three marionettes.

"There comes a time," the shogun said, "when a leader must know what is best. Not for himself, but for others, and for his country." He turned his head a little to look at Faust. "Fuhrer, I do not agree with what you have done in creating the Maiden Chips, but I will tell you why, in time. But first. . . ." He looked to Obiichi. "Soemon Obiichi?"

"Yes, shogun?" Obiichi asked without raising his head.

"Go to the Japoness Pioneer History Museum. If you are the right man, you will find what you are seeking there. Come back when you have."

Obiichi sat up all at once, his eyes wide. "Shogun?"

"Go," Ieyasu said, waving his hand. He was starting to smile. "Trust me, if you find her, you'll know what I mean."

Obiichi slowly rose to his feet, then bowed deeply to the shogun. "I shall return, shogun. Thank you for your kindness."

Ieyasu said nothing as Obiichi took his leave, but then turned to Faust. "Come, Faust," he said, rising slowly to his feet. "Walk in the garden with me, and I will tell you about the Maiden Circuits."

Faust stood, as did the marionettes. They looked to him, and Faust looked to the shogun. "Do you want them to come?" he asked.

"It's better that they stay here," the shogun said, shaking his head. The faint smile was still on his face. "Hikozaemon, entertain the marionettes."

Holding back a smirk at the old man's sputtering, Faust followed Ieyasu out the room's back door, toward the palace gardens.


	10. Part 9: Old Stories, New Beginnings

Chapter 9: Old Stories and New Beginnings

It was strange to be walking without the marionettes.

Faust had grown so used to having at least one of them by his side, usually all three. He had come to count on Tiger, Luchs, and Panther for both protection and companionship, things he knew he needed as the ruler of Gartlant. Now, strolling through the gardens of Castle Japoness with only the shogun, he felt oddly alone.

Ieyasu led him to the koi pond, and picked up a small paper bag from a nearby bench. He took a handful of fish food out of the bag, and began dropping pieces into the water. Faust watched as the brightly colored fish swam near the surface, grabbing at the bits of food.

"The koi are always hungry," Ieyasu said, sounding as though he could have been talking to anyone. "I try to come out here every day."

Faust tried to smile at that, but couldn't help wondering if Ieyasu was trying to change the subject. "You said you wanted to tell me about the Maiden Circuits, shogun," he said.

Ieyasu chuckled, and Faust frowned. "You seem to be in a hurry to learn," Ieyasu said. "I remember what it was like to be your age." He looked up from the pond, and gave Faust a significant look. "Are you really that eager to know? You're not going to like it."

"I'll be the judge of that," Faust said tersely. Ieyasu was starting to sound like the old man had, like he knew what was best all the time and would make sure Faust thought the same. That wasn't going to happen, Faust thought. If he'd learned anything as Gartlant's leader, it was that things almost never worked exactly as anyone thought they would. "Tell me."

Ieyasu tossed some more food to the koi, and sighed. "I have to admit," he began, his voice heavy, "I'm surprised that you've managed to make your marionettes grow so much in such a short time."

"A short time?" Faust asked, drawing back. "It's been almost a year since I awakened Luchs and Panther, and Tiger's been with me since I was a child."

"Perhaps I should be more blunt," Ieyasu said. He turned and looked Faust in the eye. "I didn't think that you would be able to make them grow that much in so short a time."

"Why?" Faust asked, his voice flat.

"You're not like the one before you," Ieyasu said, though he was starting to smile. "I'm not sure why, but you seem to care about your country, about your people, and especially about your marionettes. It's good to see."

Faust paused, wondering if he should tell Ieyasu why he was so different from the old man and all the Fausts who'd come before him. After a moment, he decided against it. Some things were better kept to himself, were better kept within his homeland. "I learned from others' mistakes," he said, leaving it at that. "But I still want to know what this has to do with the Maiden Circuit, and what you mean about making the marionettes grow."

Ieyasu sighed, and looked back down to the pond. "The Maiden Circuit is supposed to emulate a heart," he said, "though it might be better to say that it's meant to give them a soul. Over time, a marionette with a Maiden Circuit will learn a greater range of emotions and feelings, and will mature, just like any other person. But the Maiden Circuit makes them dedicated to only one man, the one that they call 'master.' Only that man can make them grow."

Faust drew back. He remembered how Tiger had called him 'master' when he was younger, and how Luchs and Panther had called him the same when he'd awakened them. Telling them not to call him 'master' had been the first real order he'd given all of them. Could it be. . . . "I told them not to call me master," Faust said quietly.

Ieyasu laughed loudly, and Faust frowned at him. "That's probably the best thing you could have done, Faust," Ieyasu chuckled. "If they don't see you as someone they have to serve, but someone they want to serve, that'll make them grow more quickly. The more they grow, the more human they'll become. I see why they've come so far."

Faust relaxed, and started to smile a little. "It wasn't right," he said. "They're marionettes, but they're not slaves. They should be treated with respect."

"If you give them that respect, then they'll continue to grow," Ieyasu said, and the laughter disappeared from his eyes. "And if they do, then things will only be more difficult for you."

"Tell me the whole story, Ieyasu," Faust said, taking a step toward the other man. "You're not a diplomat, so stop dancing around the truth."

Ieyasu nodded, and stepped over to sit on the bench. "Very well," he said. "How much do you remember about the Mesopotamia?"

"Some," Faust said, recalling the images from his dreams and what he'd read about the ship when he was younger. "I know the history, but the memories aren't as clear."

"But you remember Lorelei, of course," Ieyasu said. He was starting to sound sad.

"Of course," Faust echoed. "She's the one who built the ship's main computer."

"Among other things, yes," Ieyasu said. "She made the emotional system for the Mesopotamia's computer, which our ancestors duplicated for the Maiden Circuits. But do you remember why the Maiden Circuits were necessary?"

A single line from the texts he'd read back before he'd awakened Luchs and Panther flashed into Faust's memory. "To assist in bringing Lorelei to Terra II," Faust recited. He looked over at Ieyasu, who nodded. "It's been most of a year since I even thought about that," he said quietly. "I didn't understand it then, but I had a feeling I didn't want to."

"You probably don't," Ieyasu said heavily. "If you want, I'll spare you, but you said you wanted to know everything."

"Tell me," Faust said before he lost his nerve.

"Lorelei is alive," Ieyasu said, gazing into the pond. Faust wondered what the other man was really seeing. "She's being held hostage by the Mesopotamia. It loves her."

"How can a machine love--" Faust stopped before finishing the sentence. If the Maiden Circuits were based off of Lorelei's work on the Mesopotamia, then a machine could indeed love someone.

"However," Ieyasu said, continuing as though Faust hadn't spoken, "the cold sleep that it holds Lorelei in isn't perfect. She is aging, slowly. When the marionettes' Maiden Circuits have reached full growth, the Mesopotamia will be able to sense this. We're not sure what it will do, but it knows that the Circuits were created to be a replacement for Lorelei. When that time comes, the marionettes will have to go to the Mesopotamia and set Lorelei free. They will have to take her place."

Faust staggered, and caught himself on the back of the bench. He sat down so he wouldn't fall down. "I'm going to lose them?" he asked quietly. "No matter . . . no matter what happens, in the end, I'm going to lose them to the ship?"

"They'll have to stay, so that women can finally be part of Terra II," Ieyasu said. "It's not natural to have a planet with only men, I'd hope you understood that."

Faust nodded, though the cold feeling that was growing inside him made it difficult to think of anything else. All that he'd done, he'd done with them at his side. Imagining life without them felt so . . . blank. So empty. He turned and looked at Ieyasu, trying to keep himself from crying at the thought. "I can't," he whispered. "There has to be another way. I can't let them go. I'll have Hess clone the circuits, or--"

"Faust," Ieyasu said calmly, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You're young, I know this has to be difficult for you. But we don't know how long it'll take for the circuits to reach full growth. It could take years, even decades."

"Or it could happen tomorrow!" Faust snapped. "What's the point of doing all this if it's just going to take them away from me?" He stood, throwing off Ieyasu's hand, and started to pace. "There has to be another way."

"There isn't," Ieyasu said, shaking his head. "Tell me, in all the research that went into creating the Maiden Chips, were you ever able to duplicate the emotions that were already there? Or did those have to be created separately?"

Faust paused, thinking back to what Hess had told him. "I'm not sure," he said after a moment. "I know Hess came up with the different personality types based on what he found, but I don't know what he did to get there."

"I hope you won't take that risk, Faust," Ieyasu said gravely. "Trying to trick the Mesopotamia could have consequences for the whole planet." He gave Faust a stern look. "Would you sacrifice all of Terra II just to keep your marionettes?"

Faust turned away, and didn't answer.

* * *

When Faust and Ieyasu returned to the shogun's chamber, they found the three marionettes and Hikozaemon sitting in a circle, playing what looked like some kind of game with tiles. Faust and Ieyasu both stopped in the doorway. All of the marionettes had shed their coats, and Luchs and Tiger both had one boot off, while Panther had taken off both of hers. As for Hikozaemon, he was sitting there in his underwear.

"Tiger," Faust said calmly, "Luchs, Panther. . . . You know I don't like to make demands, but you are going to tell me what's going on."

"Hiko said he could beat us in any game we wanted," Luchs said matter-of-factly.

"Strip mah-jongg was my idea!" Panther said, giving Faust a grin.

Faust put a hand to his forehead, then looked over at Ieyasu. "I'm sorry," he said. "They're usually better-behaved than this."

Ieyasu chuckled. "You're usually a better player than that, Hikozaemon," he said. "What happened?"

Hikozaemon grumbled, but said nothing more.

After the game was declared over and everyone was given time to put their clothes back on, Faust and the marionettes again sat with Ieyasu and Hikozaemon. The older man looked embarrassed, but Faust noted that he seemed a little less disagreeable than before.

"If we can," Faust said, "I'd like to discuss some trade agreements. I think our countries could benefit each other, I can tell that Japoness has a lot to offer." He paused, and glanced at Hikozaemon before continuing. "And I'd like to see about making the G-Model marionettes available here."

"We could arrange that," Ieyasu said, "though I'm not sure how well they'd be received. Most people here don't see their marionettes as anything other than tools."

"Most people in Gartlant didn't either," Tiger said, sounding quite confident. "Faust-sama helped change their minds."

"Perhaps," Ieyasu said. "We'll see what happens. As for other arrangements, I'm sure we can--"

There was the sound of people yelling outside the shogun's chamber, along with what sounded like a hyperactive female voice. The doors flew open, and a marionette with long blue hair sped into the room, just short of bouncing off the walls. She was clad in a blue and black bodysuit, and her eyes were open very wide. A moment later, before the marionette had even slowed down, Obiichi entered. He was smiling.

"Shogun Ieyasu," Obiichi said, and bowed deeply. "I would like to--"

"Hey, Obiichi!" the marionette said, skidding to a halt at Obiichi's side. "Who're the old guys? And who's the guy with the funny hair? And what about the other three marionettes? Huh? Huh?"

Tiger leaned over and quietly asked Faust, "Was I ever like that?"

"Not at all," Faust whispered back.

"Old guys?" Hikozaemon said, starting to rise. "He is the shogun! You must address him with respect!"

The marionette stuck her tongue out at Hikozaemon, and looked back to Obiichi. "What's a shogun?"

"He is the leader of Japoness," Obiichi said calmly. "Now, sit, as I told you." He and the marionette both kneeled, though the marionette kept looking around at everything. "Shogun Ieyasu," Obiichi began again, "I would like to introduce Lime."

Faust took a good look at this new marionette, and started to smile. She was different than his own, that was for sure, but she definitely had a Maiden Circuit. She was still looking all around the room, like she was seeing everything for the first time - which, Faust supposed, was true. He remembered how Luchs and Panther had been after they had first been awakened, and knew that they were nothing like this. They had been given orders before awakening, somehow. Faust found a small comfort in knowing that the shogun hadn't done anything like that with the Japoness marionettes.

"Welcome, Lime," Ieyasu said. He was smiling like he'd just been given a great gift. "Did Obiichi awake you?"

"Yes!" she exclaimed, and nearly jumped into Obiichi's lap while giving him a very enthusiastic hug. To his credit, Obiichi managed to remain composed. "Obiichi found me, I was asleep. He said we had to come back here so we could find the other ones like me. I didn't understand that, but he said it's important."

"It is, Lime," Obiichi said. "Shogun, if you could introduce me, I would like to meet the others."

"Of course," the shogun said with a nod and chuckle. "Come, everyone."

The shogun led them down to the third floor of the palace. Lime asked questions all the way down, and managed to break at least one door in her enthusiasm to get where they were going. She didn't calm down until Obiichi said that he would like her to stay by his side, and she took that as a chance to leap onto his back and ask for a ride.

"It's very strange, Faust-sama," Tiger said. She and Faust and the other marionettes were walking a ways behind Obiichi, Lime, Ieyasu, and Hikozaemon, so that they could talk. She glanced up at Faust, a questioning look on her face. "Something doesn't seem right about how she's acting. I don't remember being like that."

Faust sighed, and held his arms out for the marionettes to gather close to him. "I was thinking about that," he said. "Do you remember how you had to call me 'master' when you first woke up?" he asked, looking down at Luchs and Panther.

Panther sneered. "Yeah, I remember," she said, "and I remember that your first order was that we didn't have to. You think that's why she's acting like a kid, Faust-sama?"

"Seems like it," Faust said. "I don't know if it was the old man or someone before him, but one of them programmed you three before you woke up. Maybe they thought it would help whoever ended up with you, but I think it's. . . ." He trailed off, and shook his head. "I'm sorry," he said. "I wish they hadn't done it. I'd rather have you three be how you're supposed to be."

"But we can now, Faust-sama," Luchs said. "Your orders go against other programming, of course. And besides, if Tiger had been bouncing off the walls like that one, you'd have been in a lot of trouble when you were younger."

Faust grimaced. "Good point," he said.

"Still," Luchs said, "she has the same Maiden Circuit pattern as Tiger. It's strange that she'd be so different."

"She does?" Tiger asked, her eyes widening. "What do you mean, the same pattern?"

Luchs's eyes glowed blue behind her bangs for a moment, then went dark again. "It's hard to tell," she said. "It's just the same designation, but all it says is 'one.' I know that mine is 'two' and Panther's is 'three,' but that's all I can get."

"You think the next two are going to be like us?" Panther asked.

"Somewhat," Luchs said. She looked up at Faust and gave him the kind of smile he was used to seeing on her. "But Obiichi can have them, whoever they are. Faust-sama belongs to us."

"Oh, really," Faust said, but he was grinning. He pulled the three of them closer, and continued down the hall to where the others waited.

They were gathered around a bathroom, of all places. Obiichi was frowning at the shogun, who looked like he'd just finished laughing.

"My predecessors had a sense of humor, I guess," Ieyasu said as Faust and the other marionettes joined the group. "I'm not sure why they put her in a bathroom stall, but that's where she is." He gestured to the boarded-up door, and looked at Obiichi.

"There's a marionette in the bathroom?" Lime asked. "Why's she taking so long in there?"

There was a brief pause as everyone looked at Lime, who didn't seem to understand. After shaking his head, Obiichi approached the boarded-up door and studied it for a moment. He stepped back, then raised his fist and thrust it at the wood. There was a loud snap, and the door collapsed into a pile of rubble.

"Wow!" Lime yelled. "Hey, I can do that too! Watch--"

"Hold, Lime," Obiichi said, holding out a hand to stop her. "Let's see who was hiding in here."

The dust cleared, revealing a pod like the ones Luchs and Tiger had been sleeping in, though of a simpler design. The glass was partly clouded, but the outline of a short, slender marionette could be seen within. Obiichi took a step closer, and the pod started to beep.

"She's waking up," Ieyasu said, a hint of reverence in his voice. "Make sure that she sees you when she comes out, Obiichi."

"Yes, Shogun," Obiichi said, standing tall. "Lime, stand with me."

Lime jumped to Obiichi's side and stood the same as him, though she was giggling. There was the sound of rushing water as the pod began to open, and pale pink liquid poured out, pooling and rushing past their feet. Once the pod door was completely open, there was a strange wavering in the air, and the marionette opened her eyes.

She was, as Faust had seen, short and thin, and was dressed in a sleeveless and legless bodysuit that had ruffles around the cuffs. Her hair was purple, and mostly short save for two ponytails at the sides of her head that nearly reached her feet. She started to stand, and Obiichi took a step toward her and offered his hand.

Faust couldn't help feeling a strange sense of deja vu. Had it truly been less than a year since he'd done much the same for Luchs and Panther? Had he known what it would be like to have marionettes with emotions, marionettes with souls, would he have done the same? He knew that he would have, but from what he'd seen so far, the Japoness marionettes were not the same as his own, far from it. Though Obiichi seemed strong and capable, Faust wondered just how much the other man knew what he was getting into.

Then again, Faust thought, he was sure Obiichi would enjoy learning how to live with it. Faust knew he had.

The purple-haired marionette stepped out of the pod, taking Obiichi's hand, and looked around at the crowd. She blushed, and Faust blinked. In all the time he'd known his marionettes, never once had any of them blushed.

"Master?" the marionette asked, and Obiichi nodded. "I am Cherry, master. Thank you for awakening me. What shall I call you?"

"My name is Soemon Obiichi," Obiichi said, and smiled. "There's no need to call me 'master,' Cherry."

"But you are my master, master!" Cherry said, looking almost hurt. "If I don't call you--"

"Please," Obiichi said. "Just call me Obiichi." He nodded toward Lime. "This is Lime, she does the same."

"That's because Obiichi's my Obiichi!" Lime said, leaping toward Obiichi and hugging him.

"Must you--" Cherry stepped toward Obiichi, and took his hand in both of hers. "Obiichi-sama. . . ." she said, looking like she was about to plead.

"They learn quickly," Luchs said quietly to Faust. He chuckled.

"Come, come," Ieyasu said, grinning beneath his mustache. "There's still one more, Obiichi."

"Another one?" Cherry asked, her eyes wide. "Obiichi-sama, are you--"

"Hey, we come in threes," Panther interrupted, smirking down at Cherry. "You'll get used to it. Maybe."

Cherry frowned up at her, but said nothing.

The party made their slow way down to the first floor, and headed out toward the gardens in front of the castle. It took some time, as Lime was still asking questions about everything and Cherry insisted upon walking while holding Obiichi's hand. Once they were outside, they gathered around the statue of the woman with the urn. All five marionettes peered closely at the statue.

"The last one's held here," Ieyasu said. "From what I've read, the shoguns before me thought there would be some need to call her in an emergency, so there's a button in my chambers to bring the statue there." He laughed, shaking his head. "I don't know why they thought that would be necessary. Find the button and awaken her, Obiichi."

"Yes, Shogun," Obiichi said, and began searching the statue. A second later, Lime joined in.

"So that's why this thing felt so weird," Panther said, looking at the statue with her head cocked. "There's another marionette in it."

Faust nodded, and wondered if he'd ever understand why Japoness had gone to such bizarre lengths with their marionettes. As far as he knew, the shoguns didn't transfer memories from one to the next, so it must have all been written down. Looking at Ieyasu, he could understand why they hadn't used the same practice as Gartlant. He guessed that Japoness was the better for it. Faust sighed. There was still so much to fix, so much to undo. Now that Obiichi was set, it would be best for him to get back home.

"Obiichi, I found it!" Lime exclaimed, hanging upside down from the statue's vase. "Look, look!"

Obiichi looked where Lime was pointing, and nodded. "Thank you, Lime. Now, please get down. I don't think she'd like you hanging off of her when she wakes up."

Lime whined for a moment, then flipped down and landed at Obiichi's side. Cherry stood next to him as well, and Obiichi reached up and pressed the hidden button.

There was a bright flash, and the entire statue began to glow bright yellow, nearly outdoing the sun. Faust and the others shielded their eyes, and heard the crumbling as the stone fell apart. When the light dimmed, the shape of a tall, long-haired marionette was visible, crouched on the former statue's base.

"Amazing," Luchs whispered. "Her power level is off the charts. She's made for combat, Faust-sama."

"Maybe she can wrestle with the other two for Obiichi," Panther cracked.

The marionette stood to her full height, and shook out her long red hair. She was dressed in a bodysuit similar to Lime's, and her eyes were a dark red when she opened them. She looked around at the group, then stepped down and stood in front of Obiichi.

"You're the one who woke me up," she said. "What's your name?"

"Soemon Obiichi," he said.

"Obiichi," the marionette said with a nod. "I'm Bloodberry." She leaned in and kissed Obiichi on the cheek. "Thanks."

As soon as Bloodberry pulled back from Obiichi, Lime and Cherry started glaring at her. Fortunately, the shogun's laughter interrupted them all.

"Welcome, welcome, all of you," he said. "Please, stay here at the palace tonight." He looked from Obiichi to Faust and back, taking in all the marionettes on the way. "I'd like to invite you all to dine with me, we have a lot to talk about."

Faust nodded, but the significant look Ieyasu was giving him made him frown.


	11. Part 10: A Night in Japoness

Chapter 10:A Night in Japoness

The dinner went better than Faust had thought it would. Shogun Ieyasu had a very long table brought into one of the palace's dining rooms, and he sat at the head, with Hikozaemon at the foot. Faust and Obiichi sat at the center of each side, their marionettes gathered around them. They all sat on the floor, traditional Japoness-style, and Faust was glad for that. Obiichi's three marionettes seemed to want to be as close to him as possible, and Faust had the feeling that there would have been trouble if they'd been sitting in chairs. Tiger, Luchs, and Panther started off somewhat better behaved, though they did start trying to feed him partway through the meal. He ended up having to suggest that they take turns.

It was some time after the meal, when the shogun was talking to the six marionettes and asking them what they thought of their masters, that Obiichi pulled Faust aside. They walked to a far corner of the room, and Obiichi gave Faust a concerned look.

"What's wrong?" Faust asked, then grinned. "They're too much for you already?"

"Something like that," Obiichi said, and frowned. He glanced over Faust's shoulder, toward the table.

"Really," Faust said, his grin disappearing. "You're not having second thoughts, are you?"

"Nothing of the sort. I simply worry about my own abilities." Obiichi looked back to Faust, concern clear on his face. "They want to be loved, I can see," he said, his voice quiet. "And they have a great deal of love to give. I simply worry that I will not be able to show them all love equally."

Faust started to say something, then paused, and looked over his shoulder to Tiger, Luchs, and Panther. He wondered if he would have felt the same way, had he come to know them all at once. As he looked at each of them in turn, Faust found that he could understand Obiichi's worries, but he knew that there was nothing for him to worry about. The marionettes were different, very different, and so it was easy to love them in their-

He felt his heart lurch, and it took a second for Faust to steady himself. Despite everything, he'd never thought of them that way. With so much happening as leader of Gartlant, and with the idea of marionettes as more than just tools, as real companions, such a new one for nearly everyone in his home country, Faust could understand why he'd never taken the time to really think about how he saw them. Could it be? Did he love them?

Ieyasu's words came back to Faust, and he sighed. Perhaps, he thought, it was better not to think about it too much. No matter what, this was going to lead to him being hurt in the end.

"I think you're worrying too much," Faust said, turning back to Obiichi. "They'll love you no matter what, and I know you're not going to take advantage of that. So just learn to live with them. Things will work out."

Obiichi nodded, slowly. "I suppose you're right," he said. "It may be difficult."

"True," Faust said. "But I think it'll be worth it. Don't you?"

Before Obiichi could answer, Lime catapulted herself off of the floor and through the air, flying into Obiichi's arms. A second later, Cherry yelled "Lime!" and she and Bloodberry hurried to his side, both trying to hold him and pry Lime off of him.

"I'll take that as a yes," Faust said with a chuckle.

Faust returned to the table while Obiichi tried to extract himself from the three marionettes. Tiger, Luchs, and Panther leaned up against Faust when he sat down again. He looked to Ieyasu, who was chuckling.

"I can see that Japoness's marionettes are in good hands," Ieyasu said quietly, glancing toward Obiichi.

"It looks more like he's in their hands," Tiger said with a laugh.

Ieyasu chuckled. "Thank you, Faust, Tiger, Luchs, and Panther, for bringing him here. You've done Japoness a great favor."

"Of course," Faust said with a nod. "I trust that there's more our countries can do for each other. We were talking about that before he and Lime showed up, if you'll remember."

"Yes, yes," Ieyasu said. "But that can wait." He looked to Obiichi as he and the other marionettes sat down at the table. "I've had rooms prepared for all of you, the servants will take you whenever you're ready."

Faust looked around at his three marionettes, and nodded to himself. It had been a long day, and a long journey to get here. Sleeping on the submarine, alone, had been less comfortable than he'd preferred. It was definitely time to rest.

* * *

Faust stood atop the submarine again, though it was tilted at a bizarre angle. He looked around, and saw that it was strapped to a giant truck, and tilted back as though it was going to be launched into space. He put a hand to his forehead. This had to be a dream, there was no other explanation. He hadn't even left Japoness.

As if in response to his thoughts, the submarine started to shake, and a burst of fire came from its rear end. Slowly, the submarine lifted off, with Faust standing on its nose as though nothing was happening. It carried him high into the sky, blowing his long hair back from his face. After a few moments, the blue faded to black and Faust found himself looking around at the stars. He heard a mechanical hum from above. Looking up, Faust saw his destination.

The Mesopotamia.

The ship looked much as it had in the old historical archives, though there was something dark about it, something faintly sinister. Faust frowned. This, he thought, was the machine that had carried his ancestor, the ship that had brought them all to Terra II. This was the thing that was going to take the marionettes from him. He wasn't surprised to be dreaming of it this night.

There was a loud rumble as the submarine docked with the Mesopotamia, and a steel hallway opened up in front of Faust, leading into the ship. He felt the hairs rise on the back of his neck, and tried to stop himself from entering. But he walked forward, not of his own accord, into the darkness.

He heard nothing but his own footsteps as he made his way toward the center of the ship, unsure how he knew the way. Lights blinked on and off around him, the last bits of life on the derelict vessel. Perhaps, he thought, not the last of it. There was something alive here, someone alive. And to keep her alive, he would have to make a sacrifice. They all would.

Faust sighed, wishing he could turn around. He didn't want to dream of this. Ieyasu had said that there was no way of knowing when the Mesopotamia would seek out Faust's marionettes. But Faust knew that, whenever it was, it would be too soon.

As Faust walked on, the hallway grew more brightly lit, and he could see hints of something up ahead. Whatever it was, it looked as though it was made of some kind of crystal. A dim violet light was shining, and Faust squinted, trying to see more. Another few steps brought him into a larger chamber, and Faust saw what was making the light.

Lorelei lay sleeping, suspended in a crystal tube that seemed more like a coffin. More crystals stuck up around her, growing from the floor and shedding pale purple light. Cables hung around her, some going through the crystal, looking almost organic. Faust's gaze was pulled aside against his will, and he saw something that made him gasp.

From the historical archives, he knew what the Mesopotamia's main computer looked like. The central dome, with three empty spaces around it, was familiar to him. As Faust watched, the empty spaces began to glow red, blue, and yellow, shades to match the marionettes' hair. Once they were glowing brightly, the main dome started to glow, and a strange kind of static passed over its smooth surface.

Faust glanced back at Lorelei, and saw no change in her. "Is this what I'm supposed to be afraid of?" he said aloud, challenging the dream. "Is this what I'm supposed to see?"

"Not the event," the Mesopotamia's computer said, its voice sounding strangely like Faust the Ninth. "See the sacrifice. See what you must give up, what you've lived your whole life to lose."

As Faust watched, Lorelei glowed bright, then split and faded, leaving silhouettes of Tiger, Luchs, and Panther behind. They lay stiffly, imprisoned in the crystal, while another light flickered down toward the floor. Faust's gaze was forced to follow the light. It formed back into Lorelei as soon as it touched the floor, and Faust watched the reflection as Ieyasu walked up to Lorelei. The two of them embraced, then faded.

Faust whipped his gaze back to the computer's dome, curling his lip in a sneer. "If you're trying to scare me away," he seethed, "it won't work."

"Couldn't you see?" the voice asked, still sounding like the old man. "Couldn't you hear it in his voice? Ieyasu loves Lorelei, he has for centuries. He only wants your sacrifice so that he can have her back."

"Really," Faust said dryly.

"Of course," the computer continued. "Why else would he tell you of the Mesopotamia, and the Maiden Circuits? He wants to prepare you to make the sacrifice! He would have found someone to take on Japoness's marionettes soon enough, but Ieyasu wouldn't want one of his own people to suffer, oh no. You're of Gartlant. They don't like you here, as much as they may smile diplomatically and stare at your marionettes. Better for you to suffer than any of their people."

Faust turned his back on the computer. "You are the old man, and I'm not listening to you," he muttered. "Can't you just stay dead?"

"Listen to yourself, Faust," the voice said. "You know it's true, I'm just telling you what you already think. Why would Ieyasu be so kind to you if not to soften the blow?"

Faust looked over his shoulder, and saw his own face in the computer's dome. It wasn't a reflection, it was like he was inside and looking down at himself. As he watched, his own face grew old and withered.

"This is what you'll become," his face said. "You'll grow old and grey, alone and lonely, without your marionettes. You know how much you depend on them, you've all but proclaimed it. Without them, you'll wish you were dead. They'll disappear, you'll suffer, and Gartlant will fall. The rest of Terra II wouldn't have it any other way."

Faust opened his mouth to yell, then gasped as he came awake. He jerked into a sitting position, throwing the futon blanket off of himself and the marionettes. His heart was pounding, and a cold sweat was beading on his forehead.

It couldn't be true, he thought. It was just a dream, just old memories and the stress of everything he'd learned today. Ieyasu might be a stern ruler sometimes, but he wasn't a cruel man. Faust took a deep breath. He had to believe that. Anything else would be crazy.

He looked around in the dim candlelight. The three marionettes were still sleeping peacefully, piled on the four futons they'd pushed together. They must have been more tired than he was, he thought, if his surprise hadn't woken them up.

Faust lay back down and closed his eyes, trying not to think about what life without them would be like.

* * *

When the knock came on his door the next morning, Faust barely stirred. After the disturbing dream and the trouble he'd had returning to sleep afterward, he hardly felt rested. At the second knock, Tiger stirred next to him. At the third knock, Faust called out, "What?"

The door opened, and a servant peeked in. "Forgive me, fuhrer Faust, but--" The servant's eyes widened.

Faust couldn't help smiling. He knew they must look rather odd. For him to be lying in a pile of blankets on four futons was one thing. But sharing the makeshift bed with the three marionettes must seem very, very strange to anyone looking in. With Tiger in her overlong nightshirt, Luchs in her lingerie, and Panther in her tank top and boxer shorts, Faust knew they had to be quite a sight.

Faust leaned up on his elbows, mustered up as much dignity as he could while half-naked, and asked, "Yes?"

"Forgive me, fuhrer!" the servant said, bowing his head. "Shogun Ieyasu sent me to inquire as to whether you were ready for the morning meal."

Faust looked around at the marionettes. Panther was still snoring loudly, while Luchs had only stirred enough to wrap her arms around his waist and use his stomach as a pillow. "It seems," Faust said with a grin, "that I have no choice but to have our meals sent to my room." Tiger stood on her knees behind him and draped her arms over his shoulders, then giggled. "Please give the shogun my regrets," he said.

"Yes, fuhrer Faust!" the servant said with another bow, then quietly closed the door and hurried off.

"Do you think we scared him, Faust-sama?" Tiger asked, then kissed him on the cheek.

"Maybe," Faust said, raising a hand to stroke her hair. "Maybe."

A small group of servants returned about ten minutes later, bringing both the morning meal and a stack of papers. Faust and the marionettes ate while looking over a series of proposals for treaties between Gartlant and Japoness. Most of them were fairly standard, Faust noted, though he was glad to see that the last one detailed trade of G-Model marionettes. It seemed that his trip here had done more than he had planned, more than he could have expected.

He knew that not all of it was good. Far from it. But Faust pushed those thoughts aside, trying to keep his mind on the present. Some said the future would deal with itself, but he was already forming plans to deal with the future in his own way.

"Faust-sama?"

Faust blinked, and looked to see Tiger, Luchs, and Panther all looking at him. They all seemed concerned, though in their own ways. He shook his head. "Sorry," he said. "There's a lot to think about here."

"It seems fairly standard, Faust-sama," Luchs said. "I've read it all and stored it, if you wish to look at it later."

"Good idea," Faust said with a nod. "It'd probably be better to go over this with the advisors back home." He stood and stretched, then looked to the marionettes. "Let's go meet with the shogun. He's probably wondering why I'm still in bed."

"I bet Obiichi isn't," Panther cracked. "Bloodberry said she was going to make a man out of him three times last night."

Faust wore a grim expression, though it only lasted for a second before he smiled. "He's pretty strong, I'm sure he survived the night," he said, "though I'm not sure how well."

It took a while, but the four of them managed to get dressed and prepare for the day. Traditional Japoness clothing had been left in the room for the four of them, but Faust decided to wear his own garb. With the treaties packed up for review back in Gartlant and Obiichi with his own marionettes, Faust knew his work here was truly done. As always, there was still more to do back home.

A servant was waiting outside the room's door, and he led Faust and the marionettes back down to the shogun's chamber. Ieyasu and Hikozaemon were there, as were Obiichi and the three Japoness marionettes. Lime greeted Faust and his marionettes enthusiastically, the others more calmly. Once they were all seated, Ieyasu began.

"Good morning, everyone. Did you sleep well?"

"Yes," Faust said quickly. While he couldn't say he'd become used to the bizarre dreams, he knew that he didn't feel like sharing them with anyone, especially Ieyasu. The last thing he wanted was to ruin Gartlant's new relations with Japoness because of a single paranoid dream.

"Bloodberry snores," Lime said, sniggering.

"Lime!" Cherry scolded, while Bloodberry glared at them both.

Ieyasu chuckled, and asked, "I take it the accommodations we'd prepared were enough?"

"Yes, shogun," Obiichi said, as calm and collected as ever. Faust wondered if it was possible for anything to truly ruffle the man's feathers. Surely, if anyone in this country could deal with the affections of three marionettes, it was him.

"Good," Ieyasu said with a nod, then looked to Faust. "Have you had time to look over the treaties? I had my men prepare those last night, as I thought you might want to read them as quickly as possible."

"Thank you," Faust said, "and I did look through them." He paused, forcing himself to be diplomatic. "If it's not any trouble, I'd like to take them back to Gartlant and go over them with my advisors, to be sure that everything is as it should be."

Faust watched Ieyasu's face carefully, looking for signs of upset. He guessed that some part of Ieyasu still watched for the old ways, the old Faust. However, Ieyasu merely nodded again. "Of course, of course," he said. "I'd expect nothing less. When you're ready to discuss them, we'll arrange a meeting."

Faust grinned. Sometimes, all it took was making a personal visit.

"How long will you be staying in Japoness, fuhrer?" Ieyasu asked. "If you want to see more of the country, there are several different tours that we can arrange."

"I'm sorry to say that I'll have to head back to Gartlant today," Faust said, trying to sound like he really regretted it. As nice as Japoness was - and he did want to see more of the country, some other time - he knew that he had a lot of work waiting for him back in Gartlant. "This trip was sort of a surprise, so I left a few things going that need my attention."

"I understand," Ieyasu said. "It has been an honor to have you here, Faust. Our doors will be open to you whenever you wish to visit."

Take that, old man, Faust thought. If there was any better proof - aside from the G-Models and the major improvement of Gartlant as a whole - that his ways were better than his predecessors, this was it. Negotiating with countries that had been nothing more than war targets for centuries was something that the Fausts before him could never have done. If he had to live his whole life being compared to them, then the comparisons should always favor him.

Later that day, Faust met with Obiichi at the inner gates of Castle Japoness, where the two men clasped hands. Obiichi then bowed deeply to Faust, asking his marionettes to do the same.

"Thank you, fuhrer Faust," Obiichi said sincerely. "I don't think I could truly express my gratitude for what you've done."

Faust started to say something overly diplomatic, then just grinned. "You already did, Obiichi, when you came to Gartlant for a Maiden Chip. That was enough. I'm glad that everything's worked out for you here."

"So it has," Obiichi said, and stood straight from his bow. "We've decided to make our home here. The people of this city may be accepting of marionettes as more than just tools, after they meet these wonderful three." Obiichi gave a faint smile, looking over his shoulder at Lime, Cherry, and Bloodberry. Cherry put her hands to her cheeks and started to blush, while Bloodberry just grinned and Lime looked very happy.

"And if they don't, just kick 'em around until they listen to you," Panther said, grinning at Obiichi. "You ever going to come back to Gartlant, so you can keep up with the lessons?"

"I'm sorry, but I doubt I'll be traveling again soon," Obiichi said. "I do plan to start a place here where I can teach the martial arts. If any of you wish to visit, you will of course be welcome."

Panther looked over to Faust, then to the other marionettes. All three of them nodded.

"We wouldn't travel without Faust-sama," Luchs said. "But we might be able to convince him to come back here sometime."

"I'll see what we can do," Faust said. "Let me know how things go for you over here, Obiichi. I'll be hoping for the best."

"Thank you, Faust," Obiichi said, bowing again.

They said their goodbyes to Obiichi and the marionettes, and started the short trip through the city and back to the submarine. Faust wanted to walk again, to see the place and remember what his predecessor had planned for it. It seemed such a shame, he thought, to only see places as targets, to completely ignore everything else that they held. Keeping Gartlant strong was important, he knew that. But he didn't have to build up his own country on the ruins of others.

When they returned to the submarine, Faust looked back at Japoness's capital city one last time before descending. As he reached the bottom of the ladder, he found Tiger, Luchs, and Panther waiting for him, looking concerned.

"Are you all right, Faust-sama?" Tiger asked.

"You've been quiet ever since we left the castle," Luchs said. "You keep looking around like you're waiting for something."

"I think he was just waiting to get some time alone with us," Panther said with a wicked grin.

Faust chuckled. "Something like that," he said, drawing the three of them close in a hug. "I've just had a lot to think about, this entire trip has been like that."

"What do you mean, Faust-sama?" Tiger asked, her voice somewhat muffled as she held him.

Faust shook his head. "It's nothing," he said. "Come on. It's time to go home."


	12. Part 11: Possibilities

Chapter 11: Possibilities

Faust strode into the throne room, the marionettes at his side, and everyone there stood and saluted. He nodded to them as he walked by, then turned and sat on the throne. He glanced around the room, from one of his advisors to the next. They looked worried. He could imagine how it must look to them, him returning from Japoness and storming in as though he was about to order a war.

If he'd been in a joking mood, he might have done that, just to see what they'd do.

The trip back from Japoness hadn't been pleasant, to say the least. Oh, the submarine ride had been much the same, cramped and uncomfortable and lonely at night, but Faust had had too much on his mind to notice. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't forget Ieyasu's words, couldn't tear his mind away from what they meant.

_"Would you sacrifice all of Terra II just to keep your marionettes?"_

The immediate answer was yes, and Faust had spent a great deal of the trip back to Gartlant trying to convince himself that he was wrong. He was still trying.

"Hauser," Faust said, turning to the elder advisor. "Status report." He paused as Hauser fumbled. Some things, it seemed, never changed. "On everything."

Faust took a deep breath as the advisors looked back and forth at each other, arranging their papers and waiting their turn to speak. He tried to relax, and reminded himself that none of this was their fault. The blame lay on the old man, on the six who'd crashed on this planet in the first place, on the Mesopotamia and the woman it was holding prisoner.

He put a hand to his forehead and sighed, then raised his head and nodded for Hauser to begin.

"There've been some problems with crime in the southwest district of the city, Fuhrer," Hauser said. "Raids on the food depots mostly, but there have been a few hit-and-run attacks on police headquarters. The police force is working on it, and at last report, they have some security footage that could lead to arrests."

Faust nodded, frowning. Two years ago, his people wouldn't have had the will to ask for more than their daily food rations, and now they were trying to steal it? Something was definitely wrong there. The police could handle the thefts, but perhaps some social work would be necessary. He made a mental note to bring it up later, and motioned for his advisors to continue.

"Production on the G-Models continues as planned, and the third factory set a new manufacturing record the day before you left," Murphy said, stepping forward with a smile on his face. "And I'm sure it'll come as no surprise to you that we got our first orders from Japoness yesterday."

Faust chuckled. "Good." Finally, something was going right. "Were they asking for any model in particular?"

Murphy flipped through his papers. "Looks like the 'Tender Caregiver' was the biggest one, followed by 'Athletic.' 'Youthful Cheer' was third."

From Faust's left, Panther gave a low chuckle. "Looks like Obiichi's not the only Japoness man who wants someone else to train with, Faust-sama," she said.

"Not that he'll need a G-Model now," Faust said. He paused, and looked at Murphy again. Something in his mind clicked, something that Ieyasu had said the first time they had talked. The faintest hint of a possibility began to grow in Faust's thoughts.

He hardly heard the rest of the status reports; most were just to keep him up-to-date on current happenings around Gartlant - news of construction, employment, education, and so forth. Since the country hadn't burnt to the ground in the five days he'd been gone, most of the reports were fairly ordinary. When the advisors finished, Faust dismissed them, but called Murphy forward to speak with him.

Murphy looked surprised, but approached the throne without hesitating. "Yes, fuhrer?"

"Tell me," Faust said, looking the other man in the eye. "Do you know if New Texas has done anything with the Maiden Circuits?"

"Faust-sama?" Tiger asked, but he motioned for her to wait.

Murphy paused for a moment, frowning. "I don't think so," he said. "I'd never heard of them before President Joy sent me here, I know he never mentioned them. Is there a problem, fuhrer?"

"There could be," Faust said. "Get in touch with President Joy, ask him about them. Report back to me exactly what he says. If you think it's necessary, I'll send Luchs with you, so she can record it." From the corner of his eye, he saw Luchs smirk, but she didn't say anything. "You were on Joy's council before he sent you here, weren't you?"

"Y - yes, fuhrer," Murphy said, starting to look nervous.

"Then you'd know if he was lying?"

The advisor took a step back at that, and looked like he was trying to say three or four different things at once. "I only served with him for a few months before he sent me here. I've hardly talked to him since, and I don't know if he'd--"

"Then find out," Faust interrupted. "Give me your report when you're done." He nodded, and Murphy hurried away. Faust settled back in the throne, and put a hand to his chin. It was only a chance, but it was one he had to take. Aside from shooting down the Mesopotamia, every possibility was a good one.

"Faust-sama?" Tiger asked again. "What was all that about?"

"Is sleeping without us that bad, Faust-sama?" Luchs asked. She sounded like she was teasing, but her words hit hard.

Faust took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. He owed it to them - he owed them everything - and he couldn't go through with this without telling them what might happen. He stood up, turned, and opened his arms to the three marionettes.

There, holding them all, Faust allowed himself to relax, just a little. "There's something I have to tell you," he said quietly.

* * *

They took it better than he'd thought.

Granted, Panther was storming around his bedroom looking like she wanted to break everything there, Luchs hadn't said a word since he finished, and Tiger was clinging to him like one of them would die if she let go. Faust pushed that thought away as soon as it showed up; it was too close to the truth.

"I can't believe this!" Panther seethed. "Almost three hundred years, everything that's happened ever since the first Faust . . . all so we can go up into space and be some ship's lover? No!" She drove her fist into the wall, sending cracks through the stone. "Faust-sama, I won't accept this!"

"Neither will I," Faust said, though he couldn't put the force into it he wanted to. Telling the story had drained him more than he wanted to admit. It was one thing to hear it from Ieyasu, but having to tell them, when they were the ones who were supposed to make it come true?

He'd just told them all of their own deaths. There wasn't any other way to put it.

Luchs's eyes glowed bright behind her bangs, then dimmed, and she turned to Faust. "It's true, Faust-sama," she said, sounding like she was holding back tears. "I've checked the historical archives, and hacked into Hess's databases, in case he was hiding something. Ieyasu told you the truth."

"I almost wish he'd been lying," Faust said. With his free arm - Tiger was still holding onto the other - he motioned for Panther to come back to him and the others. They were sitting on the edge of the bed, and Panther squeezed in between him and Luchs, prompting the blue-haired marionette to move behind him and lean over his shoulder.

"Thank you, Faust-sama," Tiger whispered.

Faust looked down at her and his heart nearly stopped. She was crying. Tears streamed from her red-brown eyes, wetting his sleeve and . . . and. . . .

It was all Faust could do to keep from cursing himself. He'd made it worse. Just as Ieyasu had said, the more the marionettes grew, the more human they'd become. None of them had ever cried before. And none of them would have, at least not yet, if he hadn't told them what was coming. But he had, and so they were growing, because he treated them as people and not marionettes. Because he'd done what he thought was right, because they deserved to know, even if the telling had almost torn him apart.

He'd thought he owed them the truth. But he'd never thought of what it would lead to.

"Tiger," he whispered, and pulled her close as well as he could. Luchs and Panther leaned in as well, and Faust closed his eyes. It shouldn't have to change, he thought. He should be able to stay with them, forever; he'd more than earned it and could hardly imagine life any other way.

"Are you sure we have to do this, Faust-sama?" Luchs asked, quiet and subdued. "Hess knows the Maiden Circuits well enough after everything he did for the chips. He might be able to come up with something else. I could help him."

"That's what I was thinking," Faust said. "Ieyasu told me not to, but. . . ." He shook his head. "Ieyasu doesn't understand. It's easy for him to talk about losing you three, he doesn't have you."

"Good thing, too," Panther said. "I would have torn off that stupid mustache of his years ago."

Somehow, Faust managed a smile. If she was still threatening violence, Panther would be all right. It was much the same for Luchs; if she was offering to work with Hess then she must have something in mind. And Tiger. . . . She would be all right. She had to be. She'd seen him through everything since his first day. She wouldn't fail him now.

When the time came to sleep, the marionettes didn't draw to see who would stand guard. They all stayed, and piled together in Faust's bed, much as they had in Japoness. He didn't object, but thanked them all for staying with him. He was beyond caring about what it might look like to others, or what they might think.

His time with them would be short enough, no matter what, and beyond that lay many, many lonely nights. And perhaps that was why he couldn't get to sleep.

Faust lay there, awake, staring up into the darkness and trying to figure out what he could do. If Murphy could get information from New Texas on what they'd done with the Maiden Circuit, then he might be able to have Hess replicate them, maybe find a way to make them grow artificially so they could fool the Mesopotamia. Sure, the previous Fausts hadn't thought such a thing would be possible, or else they probably would have tried it. Why wouldn't they have, if they'd all been in love with Lorelei?

Lorelei. Faust sighed. She was supposed to be the key to all this, the reason that the Maiden Circuits had been made in the first place. The old man had loved her, if he'd loved anyone. If he'd had the others' memories, Faust knew, then he'd be just as desperate to bring her back. And then he wouldn't have seen the marionettes as anything but tools, and thus not treated them well, making it so they wouldn't grow enough to bring back Lorelei. The irony was almost enough to make Faust laugh, but then he realized that it was, in fact, all his own fault. If he hadn't told Tiger to break Hess's memory machine, she and the others wouldn't have grown as much as they had.

So, in making it so he didn't have the overwhelming need to rescue Lorelei, he'd made it possible. Faust covered his eyes and groaned. Somewhere, someone had to be laughing at him. Probably the old man.

At least, Faust thought, he'd made Gartlant better for all its people, made it so they were glad to have him as a ruler. To have the people of Gartlant cheering his name, to know that he'd made a great difference in their lives simply by ruling as he saw fit . . . was it worth giving that up, sacrificing all that he'd done, to keep the marionettes?

Faust raised his head, and looked at Tiger, Luchs, and Panther in the dim light, then closed his eyes and lay back down. He hoped no one ever asked him that question, as the answer was more clear than he wanted to admit.

* * *

When Faust rose the next morning after a dreamless sleep, he found Hess waiting for him outside his door.

"Fuhrer," Hess said, greeting him with a nod. "There's something I need to show you."

Faust frowned. That wasn't normal. "Let me wake them up," he said, knowing he didn't need to say who. "Give me--"

"My apologies, fuhrer," Hess said, leaning forward, "but it would be best if you came alone." Hess gave him a significant look. Faust wondered for a moment how that was possible with the strange glasses Hess wore, but let it pass.

Faust followed Hess through the palace's dark hallways. It was early enough that few people were awake, and they met no one as they headed toward the elevator. They descended to Hess's basement lab, neither saying a word. Faust had a feeling that whatever Hess suddenly had to show him, it wasn't good. While the bald man rarely showed much emotion, he never hid his subtle joy at working on a new project, and there was none of that now.

When they reached the lab, Hess exited the elevator and motioned for Faust to follow. "I discovered this when you were in Japoness," he said. "I was working on the next generation of the Maiden Chip design when I found a series of commands built into the systems here that I hadn't seen before."

"I see," Faust said, following Hess into the back part of the lab. They reached the room with the marionette pods and the computer where Faust had first learned of the Maiden Circuits. "What is it?"

"An answer to one of your questions, fuhrer," Hess said. He sat down at the computer, and began moving through some of the familiar instruction screens.

A moment later, Faust watched Hess enter a series of screens he hadn't seen before. At first, they looked like the ones used to design the Maiden Chips, but there was something different. . . . Those weren't the smaller, simpler designs of the chips. Three marionettes were silhouetted on the screen, and Faust knew those shapes.

Internal readings for Tiger, Luchs, and Panther were displayed before him, and Faust lowered his head when he realized what they meant. On each of them, the Maiden Circuits were displayed in color . . . mostly in color, with a percentage next to them. Tiger's was highest at 82, with Luchs at 75 and Panther at 70. It was worse than he'd thought, and Faust realized that his time with them all had just grown shorter.

"There was a significant increase last night," Hess said, sounding indifferent. Faust guessed the other man didn't know what it truly meant. "I remember that you were concerned about making the Maiden Circuits grow. It seems that you've been doing that without realizing it."

Faust held back a curse, reminding himself that it wasn't Hess's fault. He had the sudden urge for a glass of wine, but pushed it down, and was about to say something when Hess made a surprised noise.

"Interesting," Hess said, and Faust leaned over his shoulder, looking at the screen. Hess tapped a section below the three marionettes, a series of colored bars moving up and down. "They're all starting some kind of reaction. I haven't seen that pulse pattern before."

Worry, Faust realized. They were worried because they'd awakened and he wasn't there. "Keep me posted on this, Hess," Faust said, heading out of the room. "And keep up your work with the second generation of Maiden Chips. Devote as much as you can to that."

"Yes, fuhrer," Hess said. Faust didn't need to turn around to know that the other man was smiling.

Faust made his way back to his chambers. To his complete lack of surprise, the marionettes met him halfway, standing together in one of the hallways and looking very upset with him. Faust gave them a half-smile as he walked toward them.

"I'm sorry about that," he said, before any of them got a chance to speak. "Hess had something important to show me."

"You can't say you want us around all the time and then leave us like that," Panther said, looking like she wanted to spit.

Luchs nodded. "It's not very nice to let us wake up alone, Faust-sama," she said.

Faust chuckled. "You weren't alone, you were all there."

The three of them looked back and forth at each other, then back at him. "That's even less nice," Luchs said.

"Besides, what if something happened to you?" Tiger asked, stepping forward.

Faust opened his arms, and drew the three of them in for a hug. Some part of his mind told him that he'd better enjoy this while he could, as it wouldn't last much longer. He fought back that part, though he couldn't help wondering if it was denial or determination that drove him.

"Nothing's going to happen to me," Faust said. He hoped it was true, but what might happen to him wasn't his concern. It was what would happen to them.

* * *

Later that day, Faust was in a meeting with an ambassador from Xian, discussing the construction of a G-Model marionette factory in that country, when he received word that Murphy was requesting to speak with him. Faust almost stopped the meeting right there, but knew he couldn't. As important as Murphy's news might be, the betterment of Gartlant still had to be his first priority.

Faust was, however, very glad that Xian's ways of doing business were short and to the point, instead of Japoness's style of endless banter before anyone even said they were there to make a deal. As much as he'd come to like that country in his short visit, there were a few things he knew would get irritating if he had to deal with them every day.

The meeting ended well. Xian was the largest importer of G-Model marionettes, so the country's leader was very eager to have the technology available for his peoples' use and creation. Faust wondered how they would adapt the Maiden Chip, or even if they would, and was still thinking about it when he left the meeting room.

"Luchs," Faust said, "once the marionette factory in Xian is complete, see to it that I'm updated on what they do with the Maiden Chip, if they alter it in any way for their people, things like that."

"Yes, Faust-sama," Luchs said, her eyes glowing blue for a moment.

"Why's that, Faust-sama?" Tiger asked. "Do you think they might try something with the marionettes?"

"He just wants to be sure they don't try to replicate us too accurately," Panther said, grinning and clinging to Faust's arm. "He doesn't want anyone else to have us."

Faust managed a chuckle, but Panther's words cut deeper than he'd thought. That, of course, was the heart of the situation. And that was why Murphy's news could be so important. Assuming it was good news.

From the look on Murphy's face when Faust joined him in his chambers, things hadn't gone well.

"Fuhrer," Murphy said, giving a fairly casual salute in greeting. "I've spoken with President Joy. He's . . . being stubborn."

A memory flickered through Faust's mind, and he understood. President Joy being stubborn was nothing new. "How so?" Faust asked, frowning. "Has he done any work with the Maiden Circuits or not?"

Murphy looked uneasy. "President Joy says he hasn't," he said. "But I've worked with him for long enough, I know the look he was wearing." He smiled at the questioning look Faust gave him. "I was a pretty lowly advisor before he sent me over here, sure. But the man doesn't hide his thoughts very well. I don't think he thought I'd ever amount to anything, so he probably figured he didn't have to hide anything from me."

Faust put his hand to his chin. "I see. You think he's lying?"

"I don't know, but I'd bet he's hiding something," Murphy said. "I've still got a few contacts in New Texas's government, so I might be able to get a hold of someone who knows something and is willing to talk." He paused, and grinned. "I might need bribe money."

Faust nodded. It'd be worth it.

"Is that why you left New Texas, Murphy?" Tiger asked. "You sound like you didn't like working for the President very much."

"Something like that," Murphy said, leaning back against his desk. "Joy's got a big ego, thinks a little too much of his country, mostly because he runs it. I wasn't part of his usual family of advisors, I'd worked my way up through some other connections. I was always kind of a fifth wheel around there, so when it came up that you were asking for advisors from other countries, fuhrer, I figured it was as good a chance as any."

"And what if Faust-sama hadn't liked you?" Panther asked, smirking. "You talk a lot for just an advisor."

"You don't get into politics without learning how to sneak around and cover your tracks," Murphy said, smirking right back at her. "I learned how to talk my way through more than a few things." He then turned serious. "Besides, fuhrer, you've been good to me here. I'll do whatever I can to help."

"Thank you," Faust said, then turned to leave. Once he and the marionettes were in the hallway, he turned to Luchs. "Was he telling the truth about all that?"

"Yes, Faust-sama," Luchs said. "I think you can trust him with this. Even with bribe money."

"Good to know." Faust nodded to himself. Things were falling into place. Time and money would solve everything - not the way he usually liked to work, true; there wasn't much he could do in this situation except direct people and hope they got the results he wanted. But at the rate things were going so far, he was daring to hope.


	13. Part 12: Love, Blood, and Rhetoric

Chapter 12: Love, Blood, and Rhetoric

"You will die."

Faust turned away from his older self, and looked out over Gartlant's capital city. The city was dark and dirty again, as it had been before he'd come to rule. Clouds scudded across the sky, blocking the sun, casting everything into shades of grey. Even knowing this was a dream, Faust frowned. This wasn't how things were supposed to be.

As always, there was another him there in the dream, one that aged as Faust watched until he turned into the old man. As always, the other him had lectured Faust on everything he was doing wrong, told him of the future, and promised that he'd lose the marionettes to gain nothing in return. Then, the older one had told him of the inevitable.

"You will die," he said again.

"Everyone dies," Faust said, doing his best to sound uninterested. "The old man died, eight others before him died, countless men across Terra II have died. What's your point?"

"You will die like all the others before you. Old, alone, and with no one to mourn you. You'll die a lonely death--"

Faust spun on his duplicate, scowling. "You don't know that," he hissed. "Anything could happen. You know what I'm doing, you know what I'm looking for." He huffed, and straightened himself. "I'll save Lorelei and the marionettes. When my time comes, all of Terra II will mourn me."

The older one laughed, loud and clear, filling Faust's ears and making him take a step back. He knew that mocking laugh. It wasn't just the old man. Faust himself had used that laugh when someone told him there was something he couldn't do. He'd laughed just like that when someone tried to tell him that what he wanted wouldn't work.

Faust felt the stone beneath his feet shake. He looked down to see the black stone of Gartlant's palace cracking.

"You're a fool," the other one said. "You think that you know everything, that you can see through every possibility? You think you can succeed where nine of you have failed?"

"They weren't me!" Faust yelled. He took a step forward, and the balcony buckled, sending him stumbling. He barely kept his balance.

"Weren't they?" The older Faust smirked, and Faust knew that superior look too well. "Every single one of you thought you could change the face of Terra II. Every single one of you thought you could make the world turn at your whim, that you could declare changes and simply have them happen. Isn't that what you've been doing?"

Faust opened his mouth, but no words came out. He couldn't deny it. The older one was right.

"History shows . . . what Faust wants is what Faust does. No matter the consequences, Faust is always right. And everyone else be damned."

The stone shook again, and the cracks started to spread. Faust struggled, and nearly fell to his knees. He grabbed the side of the balcony, catching himself, then raised his head and stared the older one in the eye.

"You're wrong," he said. "You're wrong. What I've done here . . . I've done to make Gartlant stronger. I've made Gartlant better. I've - we've - done things to make Gartlant a country we're proud of." He pulled himself up, standing straight. "I have changed the face of Terra II. For the better. Every man who comes to love his marionettes will thank me, and mourn me when I'm gone."

"Ah, yes, marionettes," the other Faust said. If the balcony's shaking bothered him at all, he didn't show it. "Marionettes . . . and love. Do you love yours? Have you told them?"

The stone under Faust's feet gave way. He held to the balcony railing, his feet hanging over darkness. Faust gritted his teeth, and tried to pull himself up. His hands slipped, and he started to fall, then caught himself on a broken edge. The older one stepped over, looking down at him. His boot rested next to Faust's fingers.

"You will die," the older one repeated, "without ever having told your marionettes that you love them. You know why. And whether you're the only one or not, when they're gone, you will mourn them. For the rest of your long, lonely, miserable life."

The stone in Faust's hands crumbled, and he fell into the darkness.

Cold sweat beaded Faust's forehead when he woke up. He took a deep breath, glad he hadn't screamed or gasped or anything that would have awakened the marionettes. Faust wiped off his face, then sighed.

Nearly two weeks without one of those dreams, not since the night in Japoness, and they'd come back with a vengeance. And while the old man's warnings - or the older him's warnings, Faust had to admit - had always been easy to shrug off, ignore, or deny . . . tonight was different. There was no way around it. The dream was right.

Faust rubbed his eyes, letting them adjust to the dim light, and sat up a little. He looked around his large bed. He lay in the center; that was the only way their arrangement could work. Panther lay to his right, between him and the door, as she'd insisted - she wanted to be close but still protecting him, just in case. As usual, she lay sprawled out over her part of the bed, mouth open wide as she snored. Luchs lay to his other side, and Faust was somewhat surprised he hadn't disturbed her; as usual, she was using his stomach as a pillow. She'd gotten into the habit in Japoness and refused to give it up.

As for Tiger, she curled herself across the top part of the bed, close to him in a way that seemed more intimate than the others. He knew she sometimes awoke before he did, as several times, he'd woken up to her stroking her fingers through his hair, or found that she'd knelt behind him and was resting his head on her lap.

A lump formed in Faust's throat. He loved them; he knew that. And if anyone else asked, he wouldn't hesitate to tell the truth. But to tell them . . . that would make their Maiden Circuits grow, possibly more than ever before. And that would only bring everything Ieyasu had told him closer to happening.

Faust closed his eyes and tried hard to get back to sleep.

* * *

"You look nervous, Faust-sama," Luchs said, a teasing hint in her voice.

Faust glanced over at her, frowning, then grinned when she gave him one of her innocent looks. "Maybe I am," he said.

"Why's that, Faust-sama?" Tiger asked.

"Don't worry, we won't tell anyone," Panther cracked.

Faust had to chuckle at that. He and the three marionettes were in his limo, heading across the city to one of the prisons. Part of him wished there wasn't any need for more than one prison, but that had been an issue since the beginning. His advisors had said that they didn't know how people would react to the new laws and so forth, so keeping plenty of room in case things went badly was a necessary precaution. Fortunately, things had gone well, and his people had adjusted to the new ways. The jails now were nowhere near full, and most of the crimes were petty ones. Things had been that way for most of his reign, until now.

Earlier that day, Faust had received a report. One of the leaders of the group that had been attacking the food depots and police stations had been caught. Wanting to speak to the man and find out his reasons personally, Faust had insisted upon seeing him as soon as possible. A few hours later, he'd received word that the prisoner was willing to speak.

That phrase alone made Faust uneasy. It rang too strongly of the former Gartlant.

Pushing that thought out of his head, Faust put one hand to his chin for a moment, then turned and faced the marionettes. "No one's challenged anything about my rule since Goddel's attempt at a coup," he said.

"There's a reason for that, Faust-sama," Luchs said. "I looked over the recent opinion polls, and most people are happy to have you as their leader."

Faust paused. "I have opinion polls?"

Luchs nodded, her bangs still hiding her eyes. "It was another one of Murphy's ideas," she said. "He said they have them in New Texas, and President Joy got mad whenever he did poorly in them."

"Serves him right, if what Murphy said about him's true," Panther said, scoffing. "Like we need to deal with a leader who lies."

"We don't know if he's lying," Faust said, frowning. He wondered if that was really what was upsetting Panther, or if she was also thinking about having to go to the Mesopotamia. "Anyway. About the prisoner. Like I said, he's the first one who's put forth any challenge since Goddel. I want to know why."

"I think I see what you mean, Faust-sama," Tiger said, looking thoughtful. "He might have a real reason behind all this." She looked out the window. "I don't know why he'd do that, though, Faust-sama. It's better now than it was when you first started."

And that, Faust thought, was exactly the problem.

The prison building was bleak, as he'd expected, and Faust guessed that was done on purpose. The guards at the door saluted smartly as he approached, and he nodded. Someone in a military-style uniform greeted him with a salute as soon as he stepped inside.

"Fuhrer Faust!" the man barked. "I am Thom, Warden of this prison. It's an honor."

Faust did his best to hide his smile. Some things never got old. "You have the prisoner from the raids?" he asked. Thom nodded. "Take me to him."

The marionettes fanned out around him as they walked; Tiger taking the front, with Luchs and Panther to each side and just behind him. Faust wasn't sure what danger they expected from a prison, but it was best to be sure. Thom led the four of them through unadorned halls and to a door marked 'Questioning.' Faust frowned at the sign, and his scowl deepened once they were inside.

The room was a cold reminder of the way things used to be. Chains and shackles hung from the walls, and old bloodstains marked the floor. A rack for stretching prisoners stood in one corner, and cages too small for a person to stand in hung from the ceiling. In the center of the room, two guards stood to either side of a young man sitting in a chair with his hands cuffed in front of him.

Thom leaned close to Faust. "We don't use the equipment anymore, fuhrer," he whispered. "But the suggestion has been most effective."

Faust nodded, and took a closer look at the prisoner. He could have been anyone. Not far into manhood, with a rebellious look in his eyes, the young man glared up at Faust with a mixture of surprise and contempt. Brown hair hung limp over his forehead, and blood from a cut on his lip had dried halfway down his chin.

"You've been hurt," Faust said.

"Blame your soldiers," the boy said. "I let them take me and they still beat me up."

A scowl grew on Faust's face, and he turned to Luchs. "Is he lying?" he asked, trying not to snarl. He wasn't sure if he wanted it to be a lie or not.

"No, Faust-sama," Luchs said, shaking her head. Her eyes dimmed. "He's telling the truth."

"One of your men did this," Faust said to Thom. It wasn't a question. "Find out who and have them punished. That was an explicit part of my orders for the police force; they are not to harm my people, only subdue."

"Fuhrer - I--" Thom swallowed hard, then saluted. "I will handle it personally," he said.

"Good," Faust said. He motioned to the guards and Thom. "Leave us." Thom gave him a questioning look, but said nothing. Once they were gone, Faust turned back to the young man. "What's your name?"

"Why do you care?" he spat.

"Faust-sama asked you a question," Panther said, leaning in and scowling at the boy. "Answer it."

"You going to torture me if I don't?" the boy said, glaring back at Panther.

The blonde marionette smirked. "I might make you eat Luchs's cooking," she said. "But probably not. Faust-sama's not cruel."

"You're not helping," Luchs said quietly.

"Enough, you two," Faust said, trying hard not to laugh. "Tell me. What's your name?"

"Derek," he said, sounding like it was hard to admit. "What're you going to do to me?"

"Talk to you, for a start," Faust said. "Luchs, you're recording this?" The marionette nodded, and Faust continued. "Now. Derek. You're going to serve time no matter what for what you've done. I'm not here to hurt you, or make you confess something you didn't do. I'm here because I want to know why."

Derek started to lean away, but ran into the chair's back before long. "You want to talk to me?" he asked, sounding like he didn't believe it. "But . . . you're Faust. You do what you want. Why would you listen to me?"

Faust shrugged. That sounded a little too much like what the old one in the dream had said. "You got my attention. You wouldn't be leading people to steal food and attack the police stations if you didn't have some problem."

"He might, but then we could just throw him in a cell and leave him there," Panther said.

Faust made a mental note to have Panther stand guard elsewhere if he ever had to calmly talk to a prisoner again. She'd be best to have for an interrogation, though. He glanced over at Tiger, who said nothing, but just smiled. Faust gave her a small smile in return, then looked back to Derek.

"So," he said. "You've got a private audience. Talk."

"I wouldn't call this private," Derek said, motioning toward the marionettes.

"We go where Faust-sama goes," Tiger said.

Next to him, Panther chuckled. "He couldn't do his job without us."

Faust glowered at her. "Do I have to ask you to wait outside?"

"I wouldn't," Panther said with a shrug.

Derek looked back and forth at the two of them. "So it's true," he said. "You really do treat them like people."

Faust nodded. "You'd heard otherwise?"

"I've heard all kinds of things," Derek said, sounding like he was making a painful admission. "That's how all this got started."

Faust motioned for him to continue.

"There were some guys who had a bunch of grievances to take to you, problems with the way things were going. Stuff about jobs and food, problems with the police, that kind of thing. Someone started saying you wouldn't listen, that anyone who complained to Faust got tossed in jail." He glanced around at the chains hanging from the walls.

"Props," Faust said with a dismissive gesture. "Who said you'd get in trouble if you brought up a problem?"

"I don't know, some old guy," Derek said.

Faust frowned. That figured. Someone old, someone who'd lived through the old man's reign and knew about the Eighth's time as leader, wouldn't expect him to be any different. "So based on this old man's words, you thought it'd be better to get violent?"

Derek lowered his head. "It seemed like a good idea at the time," he said quietly. "But maybe the old man was right. It's not like you're here to do anything about the problems we're having. You don't know what it's like out there."

"Then tell me."

Derek went on for longer than Faust had expected. Things weren't as rosy in the city as he'd expected. True, it was easier to find work now, it was easier to get food, and the police weren't going around beating people up for no reason. But some of the new laws kept things from working as well as they used to, and some only worked on paper. After two years of problems that never got solved and thinking that they'd be jailed for bringing them up, some people had finally decided to take matters into their own hands.

Faust absorbed it all, then leaned back against the door and thought about what could be done. He was just starting to form an idea, based on some of what he'd read about how things worked centuries ago on Earth, when Derek continued.

"The old man always said that the worst of it was seeing you standing up there, spewing out rhetoric, acting like you really cared," he said. "He said that you were just going to go back to how things were, someday. He said that you'd never really let us lead our own lives."

Faust shook his head. It was starting to look like he really never was going to be free of the old man's shadow. "That's not what I want," Faust said. "That's not now things should be."

"Faust-sama," Luchs said. "There's a meeting with your advisors in an hour. We have to finish here soon."

"Thank you," he said, then looked back to Derek. "Have you ever studied history, Derek? Back on Earth, some of the countries had a system I've read about, one that the other Fausts thought was ridiculous. They let their people have some say in how the country was ruled, about what laws were passed, about who ruled them. They called it voting."

Derek gave him a doubtful look. "And you'd let us do that?"

Faust grinned.

* * *

It was one thing to get that disbelieving look from a prisoner. It was something else entirely to get it from every single one of his advisors. Faust had a feeling they were all glad that he'd encouraged them to speak their minds, otherwise, they'd all be forcing themselves to smile and nod about something they clearly thought was madness.

"With all respect, fuhrer, I don't see how this is going to work," Hauser said. He looked a lot more sure of himself than usual. "Most people don't know anything about how the country's run, let alone how to run it."

"That, and what's to stop them from rallying behind some popular but foolish idea?" Urmanov, the economist from Romana, cleared his throat and continued. "Consider this, fuhrer. Few people like paying taxes, but as we here know, they're essential for keeping things running. Everything costs money. What's to stop someone from putting forth something to cut taxes and everyone supporting it?"

Faust nodded, but said nothing, letting the debate continue.

"Furthermore," one of the oldest advisors said, "I doubt the people even know what they want. They've been told what they want for so long, getting to help make the laws . . . they wouldn't know what to do."

Faust frowned at that. He'd like to think the people of Gartlant were smarter than that. Then he remembered Murphy talking about how President Joy thought highly of New Texas mostly because he was president, and chided himself.

It was Murphy who spoke next. "This might be too much too soon, fuhrer. If we tell them that they're going to help make the laws, all at once, who knows what they'd do. They might like it, they might not, they might do something we're not expecting. I think we should start smaller."

"I see," Faust said, putting a hand to his chin. "You do have a point. I remember the marionette situation; people didn't take well to them all at once. Perhaps . . . we should start by gathering opinions, polling everyone on upcoming decisions and seeing what they think about possible changes."

"That could work," Urmanov said, "so long as you don't make any guarantees about their opinions actually making the laws." He frowned. "If everyone thinks highly of a foolish change, and it doesn't happen, some people are going to start asking questions."

"But it won't do any good if they don't think their opinions matter," Hauser said, then looked to Faust. "Am I getting that right, fuhrer? You want the people to have some say in how they're ruled."

"That's part of it, yes," Faust said. There was more, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to break that news to them yet.

"Have you thought about how to collect the votes, or opinions, or whatever we end up with?" Murphy asked. "It seems like it'd be pretty easy for people to cheat with the voting or stuff ballot boxes or something like that."

"We could coordinate the marionettes, Faust-sama," Luchs said from his left. Faust glanced over at her, smiling a little. There was always something rewarding about when they spoke up during these meetings, even more when the advisors respected their words. "We could set up something to match names and voices, maybe fingerprints. Then we could see if someone's already voted, or if they're trying something they shouldn't."

"And if they're trying that," Panther added, "then we have the marionettes throw them in jail."

Faust paused. "You mean that literally, don't you?"

"Maybe," Panther said with a grin.

"That would work," Faust said, chuckling. "If the people are more used to marionettes now, they wouldn't be afraid to vote because of them. But you're right," he said, nodding to his advisors. "This is something we should do slowly. What are the next three issues we have to discuss?"

Hauser flipped through his papers for a moment. "Rotation of troops on the borders, funding for the next generation of plasma-dispersal satellites, and regulations for the street markets."

"Street markets?" Faust gave Hauser a curious look, then tried not to smile when the man shrunk back a little. "What street markets?"

"It's something that's started happening recently, fuhrer," Hauser said, sounding a bit nervous. "Enough people have been growing food outside the city that they're bringing it in some days of the week, and setting up stands. Some places even have set days for the markets. But the problem is, they block traffic and there aren't any laws about them."

Faust nodded. "That's a good one to start with," he said, then looked around the table at all his advisors. "A week from now, I want each of you to come up with a list of rules and regulations for these markets. We'll put them out, see what the ones who are actually going to these markets think would work best."

There was a chorus of nods and "yes, fuhrer" all around the table.

They spent the rest of the meeting discussing the troops and satellites, and then Faust dismissed them. Once everyone was gone, he turned to the marionettes. As usual, Panther looked bored, while Luchs's eyes had been flickering as she recorded everything and sent it to a database somewhere in Hess's lab. Tiger, however, was giving Faust a concerned look, and he frowned at her.

"Is there a reason you're doing this now, Faust-sama?" she asked. Luchs and Panther looked from her to him.

Faust sighed. This was why he was glad his advisors hadn't asked too many questions about the 'why' of what he was doing, focusing only on the 'how.' There were things he wasn't yet ready to tell them; however, the marionettes were a different story.

"I knew it," Panther said, a bit of a snarl in her voice. "I knew it wasn't just because of that kid back at the prison. You've been planning this."

"Somewhat," Faust said. "I read about voting years ago, but I didn't think it could work." He looked at them each in turn. "I'm bringing it up now because it's going to have to work.

"There's a reason," he continued, "why I want the people of Gartlant to learn to rule themselves. Part of it is for the same reason I've done everything; I don't want them to be my slaves. Subjects, yes, but that's their choice. But they should have some say in the laws that affect them."

"But that's not the only reason," Tiger said after an uncomfortable pause.

"Is this why you haven't had Hess make another clone?" Luchs asked. Faust looked at her, and she bowed her head a little. "I saw that in his records. You haven't made any plans for an heir."

"How much of Hess's records have you been through?" Faust asked. Luchs just gave him one of her smiles. "Never mind. You're right, that's the rest of it. I want the people to start getting used to ruling themselves, because I don't know how much longer I'm going to be able to do this." He sank back into his throne, and sighed again. "I don't know how much longer I'm going to want to do this."

There was a quiet moment, then all three of them were trying to share the throne with him at once. Faust had to laugh at that. They weren't ready to leave him any more than he was ready to lose them. But he meant what he said. Without them at his side, would he even want to rule? Would it be worth it anymore?

There was the sound of footsteps at the door, and a nervous throat-clearing. Faust asked Luchs to move, and then gently pushed her to the side when she wouldn't. Murphy was standing in the doorway, looking like he was trying very hard not to laugh.

"Yes, Murphy?" Faust asked, ducking to one side as Panther and Tiger tried to pull Luchs off of his lap.

"I'm sorry to disturb you four," Murphy said, chuckling. "But I knew you'd want to hear this. My . . . investigations paid off. I've got information about Maiden Circuit work from New Texas."


End file.
